December 22, 2025 • 34 mins
The John Kobylt Show Hour 2 (12/22) - Lou Penrose fills in for John. Ben Siegel comes on the show to talk about the IRS dealing with new tax regulations. More on new tax regulations. No one wants to run for governor in California.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Can't f I am six forty you're listening to the
John Cobelt podcast on the iHeartRadio apps.
Speaker 2 (00:06):
Lou Penrose.
Speaker 3 (00:07):
If John Cobelt on the John Cobalt Show, good to
have you along with us. As the new year approaches,
Senate Democrats are raising concerns about the IRS's ability to
handle the upcoming tax filing season all the changes.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
That are across the board there.
Speaker 3 (00:24):
I mean, the tax code is complex enough, but the
first year of the Trump administration now introduces in the
one Big Beautiful Bill things like no tax on tips,
no tax on overtime, and being able to expense the
interest on your auto loan. In a letter to the
Treasury Secretary, who is the acting IRS Commissioner, I'd love
(00:46):
it that so many people are doing double duty. It
just shows you how too big the federal government is
that the Treasury Secretary can also be the acting Commissioner
of the IRS at the same time and everything's fine.
In fact, we're taking a record number of tax revenue,
including tariff revenue.
Speaker 2 (01:07):
In the billions.
Speaker 3 (01:11):
So a good Excel sheet apparently is all you need
at the IRS. But Scott Bessett said that seventeen Senators
Elizabeth Warrener Massachusetts. Angus King, who is an independent of Maine,
said they have serious concerns that the IRS is not
prepared for the next tax season and taxpayers may face
(01:31):
the lays and difficulties in filing tax returns and receiving
refunds because of all these new things. Now, this is
rich in eliminating taxes on the American people. That's going
to cause the IRS a lot of work, and that
is going to slow things down.
Speaker 2 (01:49):
So that's a pretty easy solution.
Speaker 3 (01:53):
No, I mean, we don't have to hire lifers at
any of the federal agencies. We can also subcontract out
to H and R block. I means a lot of
things that you could do in the short term.
Speaker 2 (02:03):
I get it.
Speaker 3 (02:04):
These are revolutionary changes. No, tax on tips is a
big one, but that's the big story. Back there in
d C.
Speaker 2 (02:12):
Ben Siegel is ABC news Deputy political director. Ben, Thanks
for spending time with us.
Speaker 3 (02:17):
How how behind is the IRS suggesting that they are,
or how like how bad of an issue or a
problem is this are these Senate Democrats suggesting?
Speaker 4 (02:30):
Well, I think it remains to be seen. You know,
we know that the Republicans and Democrats feel very differently
about the IRS, how big it should be, the role
it should play in collecting taxes. So it's really no
surprise that Democrats are raising concerns and criticisms of how
the Trump administration is running the IRS. But I think
there are real questions about how some of these hiring changes,
(02:52):
some of the layoffs and the buyouts at the I
R s and although some have been reversed, others have
been you know, gone through and people have left the workforce,
how that will affect tax collections, particularly when it comes
to the departments at the IRS that help taxpayers with questions.
There are offices and departments that work to protect protect
(03:14):
to protect taxpayer money and prevent fraud and fraudulent claims
from being made, fraudulent returns from being meted out to
staffing changes. Does the shrinking workforce impact any of that,
I think it's too early to say, But Democrats, for
their part, are trying to get some answers and explanations
about how the IRS plans to conduct this tax season.
Speaker 3 (03:34):
So I don't be grudge of the Democrats to do
what they're doing, and that is critique, you know, any
changes that the president is making. But It's interesting politics
because they're on the other side of the earner. The
wagejourner benefits from the reduction in taxes these different these
various no tax on tips and tax in overtime. But
(03:56):
if it can't get processed, then we don't get out
refunds or so there is a I'm interested to see
just as a political narrative where the Senate Democrats want
to take this. Are they suggesting that we should delay
the no tax on tips, no tax on overtime proposal?
Speaker 4 (04:14):
Yeah, that's a good question. I mean, yeah, there are
a lot of provisions in the Republican tax law that
are popular that have to be implemented. So it's it's
it's really a question of how this fits into the
bigger narrative that they're trying to sell the American voter
going into next year. You know, what they've what they've
talked about on other issues is that this is an
administration that is not focused on bringing down costs for Americans,
(04:37):
is not focused on the challenges Americans faith at least
that's what that's the message that they're bringing into the midterms.
So how does this, you know form as part of
that is this have to do with the fact that
you know, they want to bring attention to this issue
if people begin experiencing issues with their taxes. Are they
trying to put pressure on the administration to extend tax
(04:58):
filing season, to maybe make sure that there are temporary
employees brought in to make sure that the process goes
smoothly for taxpayers with questions, because you know, it's worth
pointing out that, you know, the IG looked at the
last tax season. The Independent Watchdog looked at how the
tax season went and the filing season went last year
with the the the IRS, and it was found to
(05:20):
be pretty successful. But one of the reasons that they
said it was successful was that, you know, the cuts
to the workforce from the Doge Group did not impact
the IRS. The IRS is exempted from some of those cuts.
There were concerns that it would disrupt tax filing season.
So now that those cuts and people's voluntarily leaving the
workforce as in effect, you know, will that have any impact?
(05:42):
Is that something that is being discussed in the administration.
They certainly want to make sure that.
Speaker 3 (05:48):
All right, Ben, before I let you go, I'd be
remiss if I didn't ask from this latest data dump
of Epstein's stuff. All I'm seeing is former President Clinton
in a hot tub. I'm not saying anything new or
nothing breaking.
Speaker 2 (06:04):
Is there anything in this latest round of new photographs?
I guess that is newsworthy.
Speaker 4 (06:10):
We really haven't seen anything new, anything that could be
described as a smoking gun. A lot of photos, a
lot of redactions of court documents, and that's prompted some
calls from Epstein survivors, from Democrats but also Republicans like
Ran Paul for the Department of Justice to really release
all the documents and to provide fewer redactions. There are
(06:31):
still hundreds of thousands of pages that have yet to
be released.
Speaker 3 (06:35):
What's the argument, Well, why not just dump it all out,
let's be on, let's be over this and move on
to something else. I mean, why what are they Is
it just privacy? Are there ongoing investigations? Why hold on
to it?
Speaker 2 (06:46):
Why not agree with Paul?
Speaker 4 (06:48):
I think there's certainly privacy concerns, And you know, this
is really an extraordinary law that was passed by Congress
to get these documents released. It's the government is not
typically working in a way to publicly release hundreds of
thousands of pages of core filings of investigatory filings of
legal documents. You have to imagine it takes a lot
of time, a lot of manpower to tee up that
(07:11):
kind of relief. And also you want to make sure
that you're respecting privacy concerns. So that is kind of
the crux of it. That's what the Justice Department is
saying that this will continue to happen on a rolling basis,
despite these calls that it should have been done sooner.
They're just going to, I guess, be at odds over
this going forward to the timeline.
Speaker 3 (07:27):
Ben Siegel, ABC News Deputy Political Director, thanks so much.
Speaker 2 (07:30):
Always good to catch up with you from Cold DC.
We appreciate it.
Speaker 4 (07:36):
Thank you.
Speaker 2 (07:36):
Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas.
Speaker 3 (07:38):
There it goes all right, So when we come back,
we talk a little bit more about how the IRS
is going to handle this and if Democrats are truly
going to stand in the way of these no tax
on tips, no tax on overtime, potentially no tax on
social Security. I mean, there's all kinds of pledges and
for Democrats to say no, this can't be processed is
an interesting political space for them to literally stand in
(08:01):
between way journers and a lower tax burden.
Speaker 2 (08:05):
We'll talk about it when we come back.
Speaker 3 (08:07):
Lou Penrose invo John Coblt on the John Coblt Show
on KFI AM six forty Live everywhere on the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 5 (08:14):
You're listening to John Coblt on demand from KFI AM
six forty.
Speaker 2 (08:20):
It's the John Coblt Show. Lou Penrose sitting in for
John today and tomorrow. And I appreciate being.
Speaker 6 (08:27):
With you, hey, Lou, really enjoying the program today.
Speaker 2 (08:31):
Lots of great information. Thank you for your take on
all of this. I appreciate the call.
Speaker 3 (08:37):
So the National Weather Service Los Angeles, as you just heard,
their strong storm forecasted showers and wind really starting tomorrow
and the heaviest, the heaviest is going to hit on
Christmas Eve. Angelino's planning to travel to spend time with
family or loved ones this holiday should use caution on
the roads, plan ahead, stay informed this These Emergency Operations
(09:01):
Center will be active activated today to coordinate with preparedness measures,
and you can sign up for emergency alerts at notify
La dot org. All right, well, stay connected with the
news on the radio here on KFI and all the
weather forecasts as we head into what is going to
be a.
Speaker 2 (09:18):
Very wet Christmas.
Speaker 3 (09:21):
I heard a newscaster this morning, I'm not sure which
morning news television show I was watching, and they said,
when we come back, we'll tell you why Santa's reindeer
will need rain gear, And.
Speaker 2 (09:38):
I thought, who wrote that?
Speaker 3 (09:39):
That's pretty good, little corny, But it was seven to
ten in the morning, so I can't give credit where
credit is due. So I mentioned before the break that
we are going into the midterm election three hundred and
sixteen days until the November midterm election, and we'll know
a lot more after the holidays. We'll know a lot
more about where all the departures, all the retirements, just
(10:04):
basically how many seats are up for grabs. There are
some Republican on Republican races already shaping up in southern California,
in Orange County, and it's going to be a real
fight to control the House of Representatives because the margin
is thin as it is.
Speaker 2 (10:21):
I mean, I don't even Republicans have.
Speaker 3 (10:23):
What is it now, at two or three seat and
Marjorie Taylor Green is retiring and leaving in January, so
it's a vacant seat. I guess, well, that does is
reduce the number you need to get a majority, But
I don't expect that seat to go Democrat. We'll see
how this all plays out. It really is uncertain how
(10:47):
Prop fifty affects the opportunity for Democrats to take control
of the House of Representatives. I'm a political scientist, so
I look at these things and I watch these numbers,
and I've been through my gosh, thirty congressional races in
my fifteen years working for three members of Congress, and
there's a lot of variables. Like all that happened at
(11:09):
Prop fifty is they redesigned the congressional districts in California
to allow for more representation by registered Democrats, hoping that
the registered Democrats, who now outnumber Republicans and independents in
(11:30):
some of these congressional districts will vote for.
Speaker 2 (11:32):
The Democrat candidate and that will.
Speaker 3 (11:37):
Allow for a Democrat to represent the district that otherwise
would have been a Republican.
Speaker 2 (11:41):
Right, that's all.
Speaker 3 (11:41):
They just create a conditions in which the likelihood of
a Democrat winning is higher. It doesn't mean that that happens.
There are still competitive races, and now you have brand
new Democrats that are otherwise unknown, So you're always going
to have loyal Democrats, loyal Republicans that are just going
(12:03):
to vote for the letter are regardless who the candidate is.
But the single largest voting block or the single largest
growing voting block in California is declined to state or
no party preference or what we call independence, but they're
really not and they could go either way. So it
(12:24):
will still take a contest Democrats, Republicans, independents, whatever. We'll
still have to compete for these congressional districts, and there's
no guarantee. It's likely that a Democrat leaning district will
elect a Democrat over Republican, but that's not always the case.
So we'll see what happens, and then we'll see how
that increase in Democrats representing the state of California from
(12:47):
the fifty two congressional districts that are here. How will
that be offset by what happened in Texas and what's
going to happen or what may happen in texts, We
don't even know if that's ever going to happen, so
it's really wide open. But the likelihood that Democrats take
over the House of Representatives, I think is high. Just historically,
(13:08):
the first midterm election after a president wins usually goes
to the other side, I mean, not usually, almost always,
with two exceptions in the last two centuries. So it's
likely that Trump will be looking at a Democrat controlled
House of Representatives, and it may very well be a
(13:30):
ten House member margin, a twenty house member margin, of
fifty House member margin. I mean, it's been that way.
Nixon was elected in seventy two and seventy four. He
lost forty eight House seats to Democrats. Carter was elected
in seventy six and seventy eighty. He lost fifteen House
seats to Republicans. Reagan was elected in eighty In eighty two,
(13:53):
his first midterm, lost twenty six to Democrats.
Speaker 2 (13:55):
Clinton was elected in ninety two.
Speaker 3 (13:56):
In ninety four, he lost fifty four seats to Republicans
wiped out. Obama was elected in two thousand and eight
and twenty ten. He lost sixty three House seats to Republicans.
In Trump in twenty sixteen, and then in eighteen he
lost forty one. So Trump did not do as good
as Reagan, but did better than Clinton and Obama. In
(14:21):
maintaining as many same party House seats. But you see
the trend there, right, So it is likely that Trump
will lose the House of Representatives.
Speaker 2 (14:30):
So what does that mean.
Speaker 3 (14:31):
That means that for all intents and purposes, budgetary things
stop because Democrats will control the budget and the budget
making process and all the committees, and they will probably
put forth legislation that Trump disagrees with or cannot pass
through the House of Representatives. So we'll get back to
divided government, which is not necessarily a bad thing, but
(14:54):
things will slow down significantly. So these issues that Trump
campaigned on, like no tax on tips, no tax on overtime,
and these kinds of ideas need to take hold very
quickly over the next twelve months, less than twelve months now,
because if they are postponed or stalled in any way
(15:18):
and people don't see the benefits of these campaign promises,
and then Democrats take over the House of Representatives and
effectively eliminate them or completely modify them to the point
where it's not even worth doing, then really you're going
to see a lot of drag on the Trump presidency
going forward.
Speaker 2 (15:37):
And that's by design.
Speaker 3 (15:37):
That's what Trump, That's what Democrats are trying to do
create some drag on the Trump presidency. What he's been
successful in doing is doing as much as he can
by executive order and allowing himself to get sued and
then challenging the lawsuits and then just ratcheting up the
challenge through the Court of Appeals all the way to
the Supreme Court, and then we'll see what the Supreme
(16:00):
Court says. It is like that has been a very
successful strategy of running the executive branch of government. Some
people call it the imperial presidency. It's the only way
if you're going to achieve real change. There's nothing dictatorial
about it. The executive order authority presides at the executive
(16:22):
position and it's been used since Washington, so there's nothing
wrong with it, and there's nothing wrong with doing something
that is unique and questionably constitutional.
Speaker 2 (16:31):
And then you see what.
Speaker 3 (16:33):
The courts interpret the executive order at the Supreme Court says,
Now you can't do that, mister President.
Speaker 2 (16:37):
All right, we'll try something else. If they say you can,
you do it.
Speaker 3 (16:42):
And that's going to be the strategy for the second
half of this presidency, because he'll have no more tools
in the toolbox. That's of course, if Democrats are successful
of taking control of the House of Representatives, and just
I mean, it's not a long time at all, three
hundred and sixteen days, and so the midterm election TikTok, TikTok.
So the strategies of making America great again have about
(17:03):
three hundred more days to really take hold, or else
we all go.
Speaker 2 (17:08):
Right back to square one and divided government.
Speaker 3 (17:10):
Lou Penrose, if John coblt on the John Cobelt Show
on KFI AM six forty live everywhere on the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 5 (17:18):
You're listening to John Cobelt on demand from KFI AM
six forty.
Speaker 3 (17:24):
Lou Penrose Info John coblt on the John coblt Show.
Speaker 2 (17:27):
And at least Stephanic is jumping ship. She's not going
to run for governor of New York. So what's going
on with this?
Speaker 3 (17:33):
Yeah, nobody wants to be governor of New York and
nobody wants to be governor of California.
Speaker 2 (17:37):
Not anybody good.
Speaker 3 (17:40):
That to me has been the most intriguing part of
this entire snapshot in time that we're in in politics
right now, is that the two biggest states and California
and New York historically have been like launch pads to
(18:00):
tremendous political careers. What do you think of the governors
of New York that have become senators and presidents and
the governors of California that have become senators and presidents.
And here we are and nobody wants to be governor
of California. And now, as you've said, there, like the
(18:20):
highest profile Republican jumped out of the race for governor
of New York.
Speaker 2 (18:27):
It's going to be interesting.
Speaker 3 (18:29):
I think the governor's race in California is going to
be about the most interesting one that I've seen ever
in California politics, only because Democrats are really good at
building a bench politically, much better than Republicans.
Speaker 2 (18:43):
I have seen this my entire political career.
Speaker 3 (18:45):
I am a Republican, I've worked for Republicans, and I'm
here to tell you Democrats are way better at having
a plan when that guy turns out, to make sure
that you're not faced with nobody and the potential of
losing the you know, losing to.
Speaker 2 (19:03):
The other party.
Speaker 3 (19:05):
Democrats have always had a plan. Every Democrat city council
member has a staffer that's on a planning commission at
their little city hall somewhere where they live, or they're
on the school board. Right, they're building their political machine inside.
And then when that city council member runs for a
position on the Board of Supervisors or runs for an
(19:27):
available assembly seat, then that person on their team that
was on the school board, then they run for the
city councilors and right, and it goes up the chain
when a state senator is turned out and they run
for some stupid position like you know, Attorney General of
the State of California is like you know, so that
(19:50):
then that state assembly person moves up and they always
have a plan.
Speaker 2 (19:56):
Republicans have no such plan. But here in California there.
Speaker 3 (19:59):
Is no oh, nobody that is a front runner, both
Republican or Democrat, frankly, to be governor.
Speaker 2 (20:06):
And the same is going on in the state of Urok.
But who'd want to be the governor of New York? Right?
Speaker 3 (20:11):
I mean, if you have political ambition, who'd want to
be the governor of California?
Speaker 2 (20:15):
Right now? If you are a Republican, you're probably not
going to get it.
Speaker 3 (20:21):
And if you're a Democrat, why would you want to
be associated with the mess that your own party has created?
Maybe Nicki Minaj. Did you see over the weekend, Nicki Minaj,
She went on stage there in Phoenix at Turning Point USA,
and she's on the Trump trade.
Speaker 2 (20:36):
Rapper.
Speaker 6 (20:37):
Nicki Minaj made a surprise appearance at Turning Point USA's
America Fest this weekend at the Phoenix Convention Center. Speaking
on stage with Turning Point CEO Erica Kirk, Minaj praised
President Trump and Vice President Jade Vance.
Speaker 2 (20:50):
How about that, Nicki, she lives in Los Angeles. That's right,
Maybe she wants to throw her hat in the ring.
Speaker 3 (20:56):
That's what it's going to take if you're going to
have anything but an institutional Democrat running the state of California,
which means it'll just continue to go in the direction
it's going, which is higher taxes, more regulation.
Speaker 2 (21:08):
Now we're seeing the signs of.
Speaker 3 (21:10):
What total party control will do, and that is corruption
at the highest level, chiefs of stabs, siphoning off fake
campaign accounts for their own personal game. Like, you'll see
more of that because it naturally follows.
Speaker 2 (21:26):
So if you.
Speaker 3 (21:28):
If we want anybody other than an institutional Democrat, then
it's going to have to be somebody from the world
of showbiz.
Speaker 2 (21:38):
Yeah, she does. I don't know if she registered to
vote in Beverly Hills. I wonder if she is. But
there you have. By the way, speaking of.
Speaker 3 (21:47):
Turning point USA over the weekend, there's a lot of
talk now about Vice President JD.
Speaker 2 (21:52):
Vance and his remarks about the United States and.
Speaker 3 (21:55):
Christianity, and really we need to spend a little more time.
Speaker 2 (22:00):
I'm talking about this because this is a this is a.
Speaker 3 (22:03):
Narrative that's running away from many core members of the
Republican Party here.
Speaker 7 (22:09):
It is the only thing that is truly served as
an anchor of the United States of America is that
we have been, and by the grace of God, we
always will be, a Christian nation.
Speaker 3 (22:22):
Yeah, and crowds, crowds go wild, look at it. Standing ovation.
All right, well, I get it. That's the right audience
to give that a standing Oh. With all due respect
to the Vice President, who I like and I liked
as a senator, and I love the fact that his
first name is J. D. And he has a beard,
and he's a hillbilly. I like so much about him.
(22:45):
We are not a Christian nation, nor do we want
to be a Christian nation. Nor is it appropriate for
a sitting Vice President to make such a statement. And
I have this argument with Republicans all the time in
my own party, like it's it's okay if you want
to be faithful, go be faithful.
Speaker 2 (23:06):
That's what Sunday Morning is for. That's what those white.
Speaker 3 (23:09):
Buildings with the stained glass windows Arefore Go be a
faith filled person and then leave church and come back
to society strengthened by the core beliefs of your faith.
But don't try and impose your faith on society. That's
the exact opposite of what we're trying to do.
Speaker 2 (23:30):
There is a.
Speaker 3 (23:31):
Separation of church and state, and we, as conservatives, are
supposed to be the ones that uphold that. And I
just think there are too many Republicans that are getting
very faithful and forgetting the place for where that faith matters.
Speaker 2 (23:48):
Look, I'm Catholic. I like being Catholic. Being Catholic.
Speaker 3 (23:51):
My whole life looked at some other religions, not shopping.
Speaker 2 (23:56):
Religions, but I you know, was around.
Speaker 3 (23:58):
People that were of other faiths, and I watch what
they do and how they celebrated holidays and the whole shebang.
Speaker 2 (24:05):
I like mine the best.
Speaker 3 (24:06):
I think we have the prettiest churches and I mean,
my priest is funny, and so I'm sticking. But you
can do whatever you want, you can believe whatever you want.
But when it comes to government, we're all on the
same team. It's Team America. So when you go out
there as a vice president and say we need to
always be and we always are and we should be a.
Speaker 2 (24:28):
Christian nation, huh huh, that's a big red flag.
Speaker 3 (24:31):
Don't be saying that, because now what you're doing is
putting one religion ahead of another, which is the thing
we fight when we constantly have to go to other
nations and topple their funnelmentalist regimes. I mean, why are
we adding countries to the terror watch list.
Speaker 2 (24:53):
And at the same time talking about how this is
a Christian.
Speaker 3 (24:55):
Nation, Like that's what those maniacs and other country trees thick.
They think that their religious fundamentalism is beyond just Sunday
morning or whatever day they worship, right, and it should
be overseeing all members of the country.
Speaker 2 (25:13):
So we don't want that.
Speaker 3 (25:14):
Even though I think you're just being kind, it's dangerous
stuff and you shouldn't be engaging in it. And for
the rest of you Republicans, you can be pious if
you want, but save it for Sunday pal Loupenrose in
for John coblt on The John Cobalt Show on KFI
AM six forty Live everywhere on the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 5 (25:34):
You're listening to John cobelts on demand from KFI AM.
Speaker 3 (25:39):
Sixty Loupenrose in for John coblt on The John Cobalt Show.
Coming up following the news at three, so video has
been released showing a US Coast Guard seizing a second
Venezuelan oil tanker.
Speaker 2 (25:51):
It's a tactical operation.
Speaker 3 (25:54):
And now, as I said, this is the second Venezuelan
vessel seized by the United States in recent days.
Speaker 2 (26:01):
Joe Khalil will fill us in on the details.
Speaker 3 (26:04):
And I have a lot of questions about this because
I'm not exactly sure what the endgame is here, and
I don't like spending a lot of time in world affairs.
This has been my single largest criticism of the Trump administration,
of which I'm very happy. I'm happy for all the
(26:25):
domestic stuff. I like everything that's going on. I couldn't
be happier. I voted for everything, except all the time
that's spent dealing with other nations. I want my president
focused on this nation. I don't care about Venezuela. You
want to blow the drug boats out of the water,
I'm fine with that.
Speaker 2 (26:44):
I have no problem with that.
Speaker 3 (26:45):
That seems like a lot of fun and we can
do it with minimal fuss and we'll see what the
impact is on the drug trade.
Speaker 2 (26:52):
But that's something you do.
Speaker 3 (26:53):
From far away, like landing on a ship or boarding
a ship and taking over an oil time.
Speaker 2 (27:00):
What are we gonna do with it?
Speaker 3 (27:01):
And then what we're gonna add the oil into the
world market.
Speaker 2 (27:06):
I don't know. It doesn't seem like it's got a
good endgame. But that's why we bring on.
Speaker 3 (27:10):
The experts and Joe Khalil will be here to fill
us in on all the things that are latest with
respect of Venezuela and the Trump administration and seizing tanks
at sea.
Speaker 2 (27:20):
Hey Luke, great to hear you on the radio. I
like to see Carl Demiel through his hand in the
ring for governor.
Speaker 3 (27:26):
You're not the first, second, or third person who has
told me that.
Speaker 5 (27:32):
Come on now, if don't forget about Steve Hilton, he's
the best candidate for governor, don't forget about him.
Speaker 4 (27:37):
And he'll make a great governor and he's running for it.
Speaker 2 (27:40):
Yeah, I know Steve's candidacy, and it's fun.
Speaker 3 (27:43):
He's got a lot of energy. I like happy warriors.
He's having a good time running. But if they like,
something has to happen, there's gotta be a breakthrough, and
there hasn't been a breakthrough yet.
Speaker 2 (27:55):
And I mean this with all respect to Hilton and
Bianco also a great guy and an exciting candidate to
watch and looks like he'd be a good governag just
physically looks like a tough guy like that, but he
hasn't broken through. And on the other side, look, Katie
Porter's going nowhere. That's not happening. She's been exposed as
(28:15):
a bach.
Speaker 3 (28:16):
And I would argue even if that audio and video
didn't come out of her being a Bach, she was
going nowhere. Just not She's not offering anything, not very
likable like Eric Swawall, not going anywhere.
Speaker 2 (28:30):
Via a GOSA. It's not happening. So something will happen
to fill the void.
Speaker 3 (28:35):
I will remind you that at this point in time,
like three hundred and sixteen days before the election, Arnold
Schwarzenegger had not yet announced.
Speaker 2 (28:49):
So while there, while time is ticking.
Speaker 3 (28:53):
Away, if you're going to enter the race as a
high profile person, and whether it's celebrity, whether that celebrity
is from the world of business, or from.
Speaker 2 (29:05):
The world of sports, or from the world.
Speaker 3 (29:07):
Of entertainment, music, whatever it is, your advantages you're already
well known.
Speaker 2 (29:14):
Right then you've got to put together a platform.
Speaker 3 (29:17):
But that's really what's missing, really from the The Republican
platform is easy, let's stop doing everything we're doing. It's
almost like the George Costanza strategy of fixing California is
do the opposite of everything that's being done right now
in California, the exact opposite, instead of tune to salad sandwich,
chicken salad sandwich, instead of on rye, on wheat toast,
(29:41):
like literally, that's the strategy for Republicans.
Speaker 2 (29:44):
So that's an easy strategy, right, easy to communicate to
the voters.
Speaker 3 (29:47):
We're gonna do the opposite of everything that's been going
on here in California. But for Democrats, what's the strategy.
Nobody wants to continue to go in the direction we're going.
Nobody believes Governor Newsom when he said as that people
are actually packing their bags and moving to California from Texas,
Tennessee and Florida. Nobody He goes out there and says that,
(30:09):
but nobody believes him. And you know it, things are
not better. Things are more expensive, right. Life isn't easier,
it's harder. Everybody I know that transplanted from another state
can tell you the story about when they got here
in California it was great.
Speaker 2 (30:30):
Now nobody is.
Speaker 3 (30:31):
Coming to California because it's great. They may come to
California for the job. They may come to California because
they're willing to pay any price for our beautiful weather,
or they just get trent, you know, they get to.
Speaker 2 (30:44):
Are reassigned here.
Speaker 3 (30:46):
But there is a difference between California nineteen eighty five
in California twenty twenty five, and it's not a good difference.
So Democrats have a real hard time putting together a
narrative that we're gonna make California better.
Speaker 2 (30:59):
It's like, well, you're all right, a Democrat.
Speaker 3 (31:01):
I know what Democrats stand for, and that is higher taxes,
bigger government, more restrictions, less freedom, and that is not
working in California. So that's why the candidacy is of
a porter in Swawell and all of them.
Speaker 2 (31:16):
That's why they're not breaking through.
Speaker 3 (31:18):
That's why they're not going anywhere, because they're not offering
anything new and different. But there is time for a
high profile person, whether it's republic I've got Tom Steyert
that he's not going anywhere either. All he has is money.
He's like the Michael Bloomberg of this campaign season. Just
spend a ton of money and not move the needle
(31:39):
one bit. So I do believe, and an experience shows
that where there is a power vacuum in politics, and
California is a huge political model, there will.
Speaker 2 (31:51):
Be somebody to fill that void. And it won't come from.
Speaker 3 (31:55):
The the folks that are campaigning right now. It's not
It's going to come from the outside. And I do
think that it's going to come from the world of showbiz.
And there's a number of names that are being talked about.
There are also some sports figures that are being talked
about on the Democrat side and on the Republican side.
(32:16):
So it would be really interesting to see. But California,
as I said, not small potatoes. It is the launching
pad for lots of huge political careers in the National Arena,
So Wiley, what's happened that nobody wants to be governor
of California? What's happened that nobody wants to be governor
of New York. It's too large of a problem to
solve politically if you're part of a political machine.
Speaker 2 (32:39):
So there's going to.
Speaker 3 (32:40):
Be somebody outside that political machine, like a Governor Schwarzenegger,
like a Governor Reagan.
Speaker 2 (32:48):
And I think we'll hear that name probably before March.
I think that's pretty much locked in, all right, so
when we come back.
Speaker 3 (32:59):
The second Venezuelan oil tanker was seized by the United
States Coast Guard. Video now has been released by the
Department of War. I don't like that name. I like
the Department of Defense better, not getting used to it,
but accurately, the Department of War has released the video
now of the Venezuelan tanker in a tactical operation. It's
(33:20):
a second Venezuelan vehicle of the vessel seized by the
United States in recent days. We'll find out what's going
on there and what the plan is, what do we
do with these vessels once we have them, and how
many more are we going to seize? And is it
making any difference in our relationship with the government of
Venezuela or the people of Venezuela.
Speaker 2 (33:40):
It's all coming up next, Lou Penrose.
Speaker 3 (33:42):
If John Coblt on The John coblt Show on KFI
AM six forty live everywhere on the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 1 (33:48):
Hey, you've been listening to the John Cobalt Show podcast.
You can always hear the show live on KFI AM
six forty from one to four pm every Monday through Friday,
and of course anytime on demand on the iHeart Radio app.
Can't f I am six forty you're listening to the
John Cobelt podcast on the iHeartRadio apps.
Speaker 2 (00:06):
Lou Penrose.
Speaker 3 (00:07):
If John Cobelt on the John Cobalt Show, good to
have you along with us. As the new year approaches,
Senate Democrats are raising concerns about the IRS's ability to
handle the upcoming tax filing season all the changes.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
That are across the board there.
Speaker 3 (00:24):
I mean, the tax code is complex enough, but the
first year of the Trump administration now introduces in the
one Big Beautiful Bill things like no tax on tips,
no tax on overtime, and being able to expense the
interest on your auto loan. In a letter to the
Treasury Secretary, who is the acting IRS Commissioner, I'd love
(00:46):
it that so many people are doing double duty. It
just shows you how too big the federal government is
that the Treasury Secretary can also be the acting Commissioner
of the IRS at the same time and everything's fine.
In fact, we're taking a record number of tax revenue,
including tariff revenue.
Speaker 2 (01:07):
In the billions.
Speaker 3 (01:11):
So a good Excel sheet apparently is all you need
at the IRS. But Scott Bessett said that seventeen Senators
Elizabeth Warrener Massachusetts. Angus King, who is an independent of Maine,
said they have serious concerns that the IRS is not
prepared for the next tax season and taxpayers may face
(01:31):
the lays and difficulties in filing tax returns and receiving
refunds because of all these new things. Now, this is
rich in eliminating taxes on the American people. That's going
to cause the IRS a lot of work, and that
is going to slow things down.
Speaker 2 (01:49):
So that's a pretty easy solution.
Speaker 3 (01:53):
No, I mean, we don't have to hire lifers at
any of the federal agencies. We can also subcontract out
to H and R block. I means a lot of
things that you could do in the short term.
Speaker 2 (02:03):
I get it.
Speaker 3 (02:04):
These are revolutionary changes. No, tax on tips is a
big one, but that's the big story. Back there in
d C.
Speaker 2 (02:12):
Ben Siegel is ABC news Deputy political director. Ben, Thanks
for spending time with us.
Speaker 3 (02:17):
How how behind is the IRS suggesting that they are,
or how like how bad of an issue or a
problem is this are these Senate Democrats suggesting?
Speaker 4 (02:30):
Well, I think it remains to be seen. You know,
we know that the Republicans and Democrats feel very differently
about the IRS, how big it should be, the role
it should play in collecting taxes. So it's really no
surprise that Democrats are raising concerns and criticisms of how
the Trump administration is running the IRS. But I think
there are real questions about how some of these hiring changes,
(02:52):
some of the layoffs and the buyouts at the I
R s and although some have been reversed, others have
been you know, gone through and people have left the workforce,
how that will affect tax collections, particularly when it comes
to the departments at the IRS that help taxpayers with questions.
There are offices and departments that work to protect protect
(03:14):
to protect taxpayer money and prevent fraud and fraudulent claims
from being made, fraudulent returns from being meted out to
staffing changes. Does the shrinking workforce impact any of that,
I think it's too early to say, But Democrats, for
their part, are trying to get some answers and explanations
about how the IRS plans to conduct this tax season.
Speaker 3 (03:34):
So I don't be grudge of the Democrats to do
what they're doing, and that is critique, you know, any
changes that the president is making. But It's interesting politics
because they're on the other side of the earner. The
wagejourner benefits from the reduction in taxes these different these
various no tax on tips and tax in overtime. But
(03:56):
if it can't get processed, then we don't get out
refunds or so there is a I'm interested to see
just as a political narrative where the Senate Democrats want
to take this. Are they suggesting that we should delay
the no tax on tips, no tax on overtime proposal?
Speaker 4 (04:14):
Yeah, that's a good question. I mean, yeah, there are
a lot of provisions in the Republican tax law that
are popular that have to be implemented. So it's it's
it's really a question of how this fits into the
bigger narrative that they're trying to sell the American voter
going into next year. You know, what they've what they've
talked about on other issues is that this is an
administration that is not focused on bringing down costs for Americans,
(04:37):
is not focused on the challenges Americans faith at least
that's what that's the message that they're bringing into the midterms.
So how does this, you know form as part of
that is this have to do with the fact that
you know, they want to bring attention to this issue
if people begin experiencing issues with their taxes. Are they
trying to put pressure on the administration to extend tax
(04:58):
filing season, to maybe make sure that there are temporary
employees brought in to make sure that the process goes
smoothly for taxpayers with questions, because you know, it's worth
pointing out that, you know, the IG looked at the
last tax season. The Independent Watchdog looked at how the
tax season went and the filing season went last year
with the the the IRS, and it was found to
(05:20):
be pretty successful. But one of the reasons that they
said it was successful was that, you know, the cuts
to the workforce from the Doge Group did not impact
the IRS. The IRS is exempted from some of those cuts.
There were concerns that it would disrupt tax filing season.
So now that those cuts and people's voluntarily leaving the
workforce as in effect, you know, will that have any impact?
(05:42):
Is that something that is being discussed in the administration.
They certainly want to make sure that.
Speaker 3 (05:48):
All right, Ben, before I let you go, I'd be
remiss if I didn't ask from this latest data dump
of Epstein's stuff. All I'm seeing is former President Clinton
in a hot tub. I'm not saying anything new or
nothing breaking.
Speaker 2 (06:04):
Is there anything in this latest round of new photographs?
I guess that is newsworthy.
Speaker 4 (06:10):
We really haven't seen anything new, anything that could be
described as a smoking gun. A lot of photos, a
lot of redactions of court documents, and that's prompted some
calls from Epstein survivors, from Democrats but also Republicans like
Ran Paul for the Department of Justice to really release
all the documents and to provide fewer redactions. There are
(06:31):
still hundreds of thousands of pages that have yet to
be released.
Speaker 3 (06:35):
What's the argument, Well, why not just dump it all out,
let's be on, let's be over this and move on
to something else. I mean, why what are they Is
it just privacy? Are there ongoing investigations? Why hold on
to it?
Speaker 2 (06:46):
Why not agree with Paul?
Speaker 4 (06:48):
I think there's certainly privacy concerns, And you know, this
is really an extraordinary law that was passed by Congress
to get these documents released. It's the government is not
typically working in a way to publicly release hundreds of
thousands of pages of core filings of investigatory filings of
legal documents. You have to imagine it takes a lot
of time, a lot of manpower to tee up that
(07:11):
kind of relief. And also you want to make sure
that you're respecting privacy concerns. So that is kind of
the crux of it. That's what the Justice Department is
saying that this will continue to happen on a rolling basis,
despite these calls that it should have been done sooner.
They're just going to, I guess, be at odds over
this going forward to the timeline.
Speaker 3 (07:27):
Ben Siegel, ABC News Deputy Political Director, thanks so much.
Speaker 2 (07:30):
Always good to catch up with you from Cold DC.
We appreciate it.
Speaker 4 (07:36):
Thank you.
Speaker 2 (07:36):
Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas.
Speaker 3 (07:38):
There it goes all right, So when we come back,
we talk a little bit more about how the IRS
is going to handle this and if Democrats are truly
going to stand in the way of these no tax
on tips, no tax on overtime, potentially no tax on
social Security. I mean, there's all kinds of pledges and
for Democrats to say no, this can't be processed is
an interesting political space for them to literally stand in
(08:01):
between way journers and a lower tax burden.
Speaker 2 (08:05):
We'll talk about it when we come back.
Speaker 3 (08:07):
Lou Penrose invo John Coblt on the John Coblt Show
on KFI AM six forty Live everywhere on the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 5 (08:14):
You're listening to John Coblt on demand from KFI AM
six forty.
Speaker 2 (08:20):
It's the John Coblt Show. Lou Penrose sitting in for
John today and tomorrow. And I appreciate being.
Speaker 6 (08:27):
With you, hey, Lou, really enjoying the program today.
Speaker 2 (08:31):
Lots of great information. Thank you for your take on
all of this. I appreciate the call.
Speaker 3 (08:37):
So the National Weather Service Los Angeles, as you just heard,
their strong storm forecasted showers and wind really starting tomorrow
and the heaviest, the heaviest is going to hit on
Christmas Eve. Angelino's planning to travel to spend time with
family or loved ones this holiday should use caution on
the roads, plan ahead, stay informed this These Emergency Operations
(09:01):
Center will be active activated today to coordinate with preparedness measures,
and you can sign up for emergency alerts at notify
La dot org. All right, well, stay connected with the
news on the radio here on KFI and all the
weather forecasts as we head into what is going to
be a.
Speaker 2 (09:18):
Very wet Christmas.
Speaker 3 (09:21):
I heard a newscaster this morning, I'm not sure which
morning news television show I was watching, and they said,
when we come back, we'll tell you why Santa's reindeer
will need rain gear, And.
Speaker 2 (09:38):
I thought, who wrote that?
Speaker 3 (09:39):
That's pretty good, little corny, But it was seven to
ten in the morning, so I can't give credit where
credit is due. So I mentioned before the break that
we are going into the midterm election three hundred and
sixteen days until the November midterm election, and we'll know
a lot more after the holidays. We'll know a lot
more about where all the departures, all the retirements, just
(10:04):
basically how many seats are up for grabs. There are
some Republican on Republican races already shaping up in southern California,
in Orange County, and it's going to be a real
fight to control the House of Representatives because the margin
is thin as it is.
Speaker 2 (10:21):
I mean, I don't even Republicans have.
Speaker 3 (10:23):
What is it now, at two or three seat and
Marjorie Taylor Green is retiring and leaving in January, so
it's a vacant seat. I guess, well, that does is
reduce the number you need to get a majority, But
I don't expect that seat to go Democrat. We'll see
how this all plays out. It really is uncertain how
(10:47):
Prop fifty affects the opportunity for Democrats to take control
of the House of Representatives. I'm a political scientist, so
I look at these things and I watch these numbers,
and I've been through my gosh, thirty congressional races in
my fifteen years working for three members of Congress, and
there's a lot of variables. Like all that happened at
(11:09):
Prop fifty is they redesigned the congressional districts in California
to allow for more representation by registered Democrats, hoping that
the registered Democrats, who now outnumber Republicans and independents in
(11:30):
some of these congressional districts will vote for.
Speaker 2 (11:32):
The Democrat candidate and that will.
Speaker 3 (11:37):
Allow for a Democrat to represent the district that otherwise
would have been a Republican.
Speaker 2 (11:41):
Right, that's all.
Speaker 3 (11:41):
They just create a conditions in which the likelihood of
a Democrat winning is higher. It doesn't mean that that happens.
There are still competitive races, and now you have brand
new Democrats that are otherwise unknown, So you're always going
to have loyal Democrats, loyal Republicans that are just going
(12:03):
to vote for the letter are regardless who the candidate is.
But the single largest voting block or the single largest
growing voting block in California is declined to state or
no party preference or what we call independence, but they're
really not and they could go either way. So it
(12:24):
will still take a contest Democrats, Republicans, independents, whatever. We'll
still have to compete for these congressional districts, and there's
no guarantee. It's likely that a Democrat leaning district will
elect a Democrat over Republican, but that's not always the case.
So we'll see what happens, and then we'll see how
that increase in Democrats representing the state of California from
(12:47):
the fifty two congressional districts that are here. How will
that be offset by what happened in Texas and what's
going to happen or what may happen in texts, We
don't even know if that's ever going to happen, so
it's really wide open. But the likelihood that Democrats take
over the House of Representatives, I think is high. Just historically,
(13:08):
the first midterm election after a president wins usually goes
to the other side, I mean, not usually, almost always,
with two exceptions in the last two centuries. So it's
likely that Trump will be looking at a Democrat controlled
House of Representatives, and it may very well be a
(13:30):
ten House member margin, a twenty house member margin, of
fifty House member margin. I mean, it's been that way.
Nixon was elected in seventy two and seventy four. He
lost forty eight House seats to Democrats. Carter was elected
in seventy six and seventy eighty. He lost fifteen House
seats to Republicans. Reagan was elected in eighty In eighty two,
(13:53):
his first midterm, lost twenty six to Democrats.
Speaker 2 (13:55):
Clinton was elected in ninety two.
Speaker 3 (13:56):
In ninety four, he lost fifty four seats to Republicans
wiped out. Obama was elected in two thousand and eight
and twenty ten. He lost sixty three House seats to Republicans.
In Trump in twenty sixteen, and then in eighteen he
lost forty one. So Trump did not do as good
as Reagan, but did better than Clinton and Obama. In
(14:21):
maintaining as many same party House seats. But you see
the trend there, right, So it is likely that Trump
will lose the House of Representatives.
Speaker 2 (14:30):
So what does that mean.
Speaker 3 (14:31):
That means that for all intents and purposes, budgetary things
stop because Democrats will control the budget and the budget
making process and all the committees, and they will probably
put forth legislation that Trump disagrees with or cannot pass
through the House of Representatives. So we'll get back to
divided government, which is not necessarily a bad thing, but
(14:54):
things will slow down significantly. So these issues that Trump
campaigned on, like no tax on tips, no tax on overtime,
and these kinds of ideas need to take hold very
quickly over the next twelve months, less than twelve months now,
because if they are postponed or stalled in any way
(15:18):
and people don't see the benefits of these campaign promises,
and then Democrats take over the House of Representatives and
effectively eliminate them or completely modify them to the point
where it's not even worth doing, then really you're going
to see a lot of drag on the Trump presidency
going forward.
Speaker 2 (15:37):
And that's by design.
Speaker 3 (15:37):
That's what Trump, That's what Democrats are trying to do
create some drag on the Trump presidency. What he's been
successful in doing is doing as much as he can
by executive order and allowing himself to get sued and
then challenging the lawsuits and then just ratcheting up the
challenge through the Court of Appeals all the way to
the Supreme Court, and then we'll see what the Supreme
(16:00):
Court says. It is like that has been a very
successful strategy of running the executive branch of government. Some
people call it the imperial presidency. It's the only way
if you're going to achieve real change. There's nothing dictatorial
about it. The executive order authority presides at the executive
(16:22):
position and it's been used since Washington, so there's nothing
wrong with it, and there's nothing wrong with doing something
that is unique and questionably constitutional.
Speaker 2 (16:31):
And then you see what.
Speaker 3 (16:33):
The courts interpret the executive order at the Supreme Court says,
Now you can't do that, mister President.
Speaker 2 (16:37):
All right, we'll try something else. If they say you can,
you do it.
Speaker 3 (16:42):
And that's going to be the strategy for the second
half of this presidency, because he'll have no more tools
in the toolbox. That's of course, if Democrats are successful
of taking control of the House of Representatives, and just
I mean, it's not a long time at all, three
hundred and sixteen days, and so the midterm election TikTok, TikTok.
So the strategies of making America great again have about
(17:03):
three hundred more days to really take hold, or else
we all go.
Speaker 2 (17:08):
Right back to square one and divided government.
Speaker 3 (17:10):
Lou Penrose, if John coblt on the John Cobelt Show
on KFI AM six forty live everywhere on the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 5 (17:18):
You're listening to John Cobelt on demand from KFI AM
six forty.
Speaker 3 (17:24):
Lou Penrose Info John coblt on the John coblt Show.
Speaker 2 (17:27):
And at least Stephanic is jumping ship. She's not going
to run for governor of New York. So what's going
on with this?
Speaker 3 (17:33):
Yeah, nobody wants to be governor of New York and
nobody wants to be governor of California.
Speaker 2 (17:37):
Not anybody good.
Speaker 3 (17:40):
That to me has been the most intriguing part of
this entire snapshot in time that we're in in politics
right now, is that the two biggest states and California
and New York historically have been like launch pads to
(18:00):
tremendous political careers. What do you think of the governors
of New York that have become senators and presidents and
the governors of California that have become senators and presidents.
And here we are and nobody wants to be governor
of California. And now, as you've said, there, like the
(18:20):
highest profile Republican jumped out of the race for governor
of New York.
Speaker 2 (18:27):
It's going to be interesting.
Speaker 3 (18:29):
I think the governor's race in California is going to
be about the most interesting one that I've seen ever
in California politics, only because Democrats are really good at
building a bench politically, much better than Republicans.
Speaker 2 (18:43):
I have seen this my entire political career.
Speaker 3 (18:45):
I am a Republican, I've worked for Republicans, and I'm
here to tell you Democrats are way better at having
a plan when that guy turns out, to make sure
that you're not faced with nobody and the potential of
losing the you know, losing to.
Speaker 2 (19:03):
The other party.
Speaker 3 (19:05):
Democrats have always had a plan. Every Democrat city council
member has a staffer that's on a planning commission at
their little city hall somewhere where they live, or they're
on the school board. Right, they're building their political machine inside.
And then when that city council member runs for a
position on the Board of Supervisors or runs for an
(19:27):
available assembly seat, then that person on their team that
was on the school board, then they run for the
city councilors and right, and it goes up the chain
when a state senator is turned out and they run
for some stupid position like you know, Attorney General of
the State of California is like you know, so that
(19:50):
then that state assembly person moves up and they always
have a plan.
Speaker 2 (19:56):
Republicans have no such plan. But here in California there.
Speaker 3 (19:59):
Is no oh, nobody that is a front runner, both
Republican or Democrat, frankly, to be governor.
Speaker 2 (20:06):
And the same is going on in the state of Urok.
But who'd want to be the governor of New York? Right?
Speaker 3 (20:11):
I mean, if you have political ambition, who'd want to
be the governor of California?
Speaker 2 (20:15):
Right now? If you are a Republican, you're probably not
going to get it.
Speaker 3 (20:21):
And if you're a Democrat, why would you want to
be associated with the mess that your own party has created?
Maybe Nicki Minaj. Did you see over the weekend, Nicki Minaj,
She went on stage there in Phoenix at Turning Point USA,
and she's on the Trump trade.
Speaker 2 (20:36):
Rapper.
Speaker 6 (20:37):
Nicki Minaj made a surprise appearance at Turning Point USA's
America Fest this weekend at the Phoenix Convention Center. Speaking
on stage with Turning Point CEO Erica Kirk, Minaj praised
President Trump and Vice President Jade Vance.
Speaker 2 (20:50):
How about that, Nicki, she lives in Los Angeles. That's right,
Maybe she wants to throw her hat in the ring.
Speaker 3 (20:56):
That's what it's going to take if you're going to
have anything but an institutional Democrat running the state of California,
which means it'll just continue to go in the direction
it's going, which is higher taxes, more regulation.
Speaker 2 (21:08):
Now we're seeing the signs of.
Speaker 3 (21:10):
What total party control will do, and that is corruption
at the highest level, chiefs of stabs, siphoning off fake
campaign accounts for their own personal game. Like, you'll see
more of that because it naturally follows.
Speaker 2 (21:26):
So if you.
Speaker 3 (21:28):
If we want anybody other than an institutional Democrat, then
it's going to have to be somebody from the world
of showbiz.
Speaker 2 (21:38):
Yeah, she does. I don't know if she registered to
vote in Beverly Hills. I wonder if she is. But
there you have. By the way, speaking of.
Speaker 3 (21:47):
Turning point USA over the weekend, there's a lot of
talk now about Vice President JD.
Speaker 2 (21:52):
Vance and his remarks about the United States and.
Speaker 3 (21:55):
Christianity, and really we need to spend a little more time.
Speaker 2 (22:00):
I'm talking about this because this is a this is a.
Speaker 3 (22:03):
Narrative that's running away from many core members of the
Republican Party here.
Speaker 7 (22:09):
It is the only thing that is truly served as
an anchor of the United States of America is that
we have been, and by the grace of God, we
always will be, a Christian nation.
Speaker 3 (22:22):
Yeah, and crowds, crowds go wild, look at it. Standing ovation.
All right, well, I get it. That's the right audience
to give that a standing Oh. With all due respect
to the Vice President, who I like and I liked
as a senator, and I love the fact that his
first name is J. D. And he has a beard,
and he's a hillbilly. I like so much about him.
(22:45):
We are not a Christian nation, nor do we want
to be a Christian nation. Nor is it appropriate for
a sitting Vice President to make such a statement. And
I have this argument with Republicans all the time in
my own party, like it's it's okay if you want
to be faithful, go be faithful.
Speaker 2 (23:06):
That's what Sunday Morning is for. That's what those white.
Speaker 3 (23:09):
Buildings with the stained glass windows Arefore Go be a
faith filled person and then leave church and come back
to society strengthened by the core beliefs of your faith.
But don't try and impose your faith on society. That's
the exact opposite of what we're trying to do.
Speaker 2 (23:30):
There is a.
Speaker 3 (23:31):
Separation of church and state, and we, as conservatives, are
supposed to be the ones that uphold that. And I
just think there are too many Republicans that are getting
very faithful and forgetting the place for where that faith matters.
Speaker 2 (23:48):
Look, I'm Catholic. I like being Catholic. Being Catholic.
Speaker 3 (23:51):
My whole life looked at some other religions, not shopping.
Speaker 2 (23:56):
Religions, but I you know, was around.
Speaker 3 (23:58):
People that were of other faiths, and I watch what
they do and how they celebrated holidays and the whole shebang.
Speaker 2 (24:05):
I like mine the best.
Speaker 3 (24:06):
I think we have the prettiest churches and I mean,
my priest is funny, and so I'm sticking. But you
can do whatever you want, you can believe whatever you want.
But when it comes to government, we're all on the
same team. It's Team America. So when you go out
there as a vice president and say we need to
always be and we always are and we should be a.
Speaker 2 (24:28):
Christian nation, huh huh, that's a big red flag.
Speaker 3 (24:31):
Don't be saying that, because now what you're doing is
putting one religion ahead of another, which is the thing
we fight when we constantly have to go to other
nations and topple their funnelmentalist regimes. I mean, why are
we adding countries to the terror watch list.
Speaker 2 (24:53):
And at the same time talking about how this is
a Christian.
Speaker 3 (24:55):
Nation, Like that's what those maniacs and other country trees thick.
They think that their religious fundamentalism is beyond just Sunday
morning or whatever day they worship, right, and it should
be overseeing all members of the country.
Speaker 2 (25:13):
So we don't want that.
Speaker 3 (25:14):
Even though I think you're just being kind, it's dangerous
stuff and you shouldn't be engaging in it. And for
the rest of you Republicans, you can be pious if
you want, but save it for Sunday pal Loupenrose in
for John coblt on The John Cobalt Show on KFI
AM six forty Live everywhere on the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 5 (25:34):
You're listening to John cobelts on demand from KFI AM.
Speaker 3 (25:39):
Sixty Loupenrose in for John coblt on The John Cobalt Show.
Coming up following the news at three, so video has
been released showing a US Coast Guard seizing a second
Venezuelan oil tanker.
Speaker 2 (25:51):
It's a tactical operation.
Speaker 3 (25:54):
And now, as I said, this is the second Venezuelan
vessel seized by the United States in recent days.
Speaker 2 (26:01):
Joe Khalil will fill us in on the details.
Speaker 3 (26:04):
And I have a lot of questions about this because
I'm not exactly sure what the endgame is here, and
I don't like spending a lot of time in world affairs.
This has been my single largest criticism of the Trump administration,
of which I'm very happy. I'm happy for all the
(26:25):
domestic stuff. I like everything that's going on. I couldn't
be happier. I voted for everything, except all the time
that's spent dealing with other nations. I want my president
focused on this nation. I don't care about Venezuela. You
want to blow the drug boats out of the water,
I'm fine with that.
Speaker 2 (26:44):
I have no problem with that.
Speaker 3 (26:45):
That seems like a lot of fun and we can
do it with minimal fuss and we'll see what the
impact is on the drug trade.
Speaker 2 (26:52):
But that's something you do.
Speaker 3 (26:53):
From far away, like landing on a ship or boarding
a ship and taking over an oil time.
Speaker 2 (27:00):
What are we gonna do with it?
Speaker 3 (27:01):
And then what we're gonna add the oil into the
world market.
Speaker 2 (27:06):
I don't know. It doesn't seem like it's got a
good endgame. But that's why we bring on.
Speaker 3 (27:10):
The experts and Joe Khalil will be here to fill
us in on all the things that are latest with
respect of Venezuela and the Trump administration and seizing tanks
at sea.
Speaker 2 (27:20):
Hey Luke, great to hear you on the radio. I
like to see Carl Demiel through his hand in the
ring for governor.
Speaker 3 (27:26):
You're not the first, second, or third person who has
told me that.
Speaker 5 (27:32):
Come on now, if don't forget about Steve Hilton, he's
the best candidate for governor, don't forget about him.
Speaker 4 (27:37):
And he'll make a great governor and he's running for it.
Speaker 2 (27:40):
Yeah, I know Steve's candidacy, and it's fun.
Speaker 3 (27:43):
He's got a lot of energy. I like happy warriors.
He's having a good time running. But if they like,
something has to happen, there's gotta be a breakthrough, and
there hasn't been a breakthrough yet.
Speaker 2 (27:55):
And I mean this with all respect to Hilton and
Bianco also a great guy and an exciting candidate to
watch and looks like he'd be a good governag just
physically looks like a tough guy like that, but he
hasn't broken through. And on the other side, look, Katie
Porter's going nowhere. That's not happening. She's been exposed as
(28:15):
a bach.
Speaker 3 (28:16):
And I would argue even if that audio and video
didn't come out of her being a Bach, she was
going nowhere. Just not She's not offering anything, not very
likable like Eric Swawall, not going anywhere.
Speaker 2 (28:30):
Via a GOSA. It's not happening. So something will happen
to fill the void.
Speaker 3 (28:35):
I will remind you that at this point in time,
like three hundred and sixteen days before the election, Arnold
Schwarzenegger had not yet announced.
Speaker 2 (28:49):
So while there, while time is ticking.
Speaker 3 (28:53):
Away, if you're going to enter the race as a
high profile person, and whether it's celebrity, whether that celebrity
is from the world of business, or from.
Speaker 2 (29:05):
The world of sports, or from the world.
Speaker 3 (29:07):
Of entertainment, music, whatever it is, your advantages you're already
well known.
Speaker 2 (29:14):
Right then you've got to put together a platform.
Speaker 3 (29:17):
But that's really what's missing, really from the The Republican
platform is easy, let's stop doing everything we're doing. It's
almost like the George Costanza strategy of fixing California is
do the opposite of everything that's being done right now
in California, the exact opposite, instead of tune to salad sandwich,
chicken salad sandwich, instead of on rye, on wheat toast,
(29:41):
like literally, that's the strategy for Republicans.
Speaker 2 (29:44):
So that's an easy strategy, right, easy to communicate to
the voters.
Speaker 3 (29:47):
We're gonna do the opposite of everything that's been going
on here in California. But for Democrats, what's the strategy.
Nobody wants to continue to go in the direction we're going.
Nobody believes Governor Newsom when he said as that people
are actually packing their bags and moving to California from Texas,
Tennessee and Florida. Nobody He goes out there and says that,
(30:09):
but nobody believes him. And you know it, things are
not better. Things are more expensive, right. Life isn't easier,
it's harder. Everybody I know that transplanted from another state
can tell you the story about when they got here
in California it was great.
Speaker 2 (30:30):
Now nobody is.
Speaker 3 (30:31):
Coming to California because it's great. They may come to
California for the job. They may come to California because
they're willing to pay any price for our beautiful weather,
or they just get trent, you know, they get to.
Speaker 2 (30:44):
Are reassigned here.
Speaker 3 (30:46):
But there is a difference between California nineteen eighty five
in California twenty twenty five, and it's not a good difference.
So Democrats have a real hard time putting together a
narrative that we're gonna make California better.
Speaker 2 (30:59):
It's like, well, you're all right, a Democrat.
Speaker 3 (31:01):
I know what Democrats stand for, and that is higher taxes,
bigger government, more restrictions, less freedom, and that is not
working in California. So that's why the candidacy is of
a porter in Swawell and all of them.
Speaker 2 (31:16):
That's why they're not breaking through.
Speaker 3 (31:18):
That's why they're not going anywhere, because they're not offering
anything new and different. But there is time for a
high profile person, whether it's republic I've got Tom Steyert
that he's not going anywhere either. All he has is money.
He's like the Michael Bloomberg of this campaign season. Just
spend a ton of money and not move the needle
(31:39):
one bit. So I do believe, and an experience shows
that where there is a power vacuum in politics, and
California is a huge political model, there will.
Speaker 2 (31:51):
Be somebody to fill that void. And it won't come from.
Speaker 3 (31:55):
The the folks that are campaigning right now. It's not
It's going to come from the outside. And I do
think that it's going to come from the world of showbiz.
And there's a number of names that are being talked about.
There are also some sports figures that are being talked
about on the Democrat side and on the Republican side.
(32:16):
So it would be really interesting to see. But California,
as I said, not small potatoes. It is the launching
pad for lots of huge political careers in the National Arena,
So Wiley, what's happened that nobody wants to be governor
of California? What's happened that nobody wants to be governor
of New York. It's too large of a problem to
solve politically if you're part of a political machine.
Speaker 2 (32:39):
So there's going to.
Speaker 3 (32:40):
Be somebody outside that political machine, like a Governor Schwarzenegger,
like a Governor Reagan.
Speaker 2 (32:48):
And I think we'll hear that name probably before March.
I think that's pretty much locked in, all right, so
when we come back.
Speaker 3 (32:59):
The second Venezuelan oil tanker was seized by the United
States Coast Guard. Video now has been released by the
Department of War. I don't like that name. I like
the Department of Defense better, not getting used to it,
but accurately, the Department of War has released the video
now of the Venezuelan tanker in a tactical operation. It's
(33:20):
a second Venezuelan vehicle of the vessel seized by the
United States in recent days. We'll find out what's going
on there and what the plan is, what do we
do with these vessels once we have them, and how
many more are we going to seize? And is it
making any difference in our relationship with the government of
Venezuela or the people of Venezuela.
Speaker 2 (33:40):
It's all coming up next, Lou Penrose.
Speaker 3 (33:42):
If John Coblt on The John coblt Show on KFI
AM six forty live everywhere on the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 1 (33:48):
Hey, you've been listening to the John Cobalt Show podcast.
You can always hear the show live on KFI AM
six forty from one to four pm every Monday through Friday,
and of course anytime on demand on the iHeart Radio app.
The John Kobylt Show News
Host
John Kobylt
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