July 9, 2026 • 36 mins
Hour Three of A&G features...
- Our guest, Lanhee Chen, talks to Jack about Platner--plus American Exceptionalism.
- More on the greatness of America...
- The 2 war fronts...
- The passing of Bonnie Tyler.
- What is an Airport Divorce?
Stupid Should Hurt: https://www.armstrongandgetty.com/
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Listen
Watch
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:02):
Broadcasting live from the Abraham Lincoln Radio Studio of the
George Washington Broadcast Center, Jack Armstrong and Joe Ketty Armstrong
and Katty and now he Armstrong and Hetty.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
We are suspending campaign operations. This is incredibly difficult because
I know that some will think it's an admission of kilt,
and it most certainly is not. We're not doing it
because of the allegations. We're doing it because of the
structures that are being taken away from us by those
in power.
Speaker 3 (00:39):
Those in power like Bernie Sanders and zoron Mum Dannie.
I mean, when Bernie and the socialist communist mayor of
New York have turned on you, then you really got
no friends. So it's that Graham Platiner dude, and he
got out, and everybody knew he was going to get out,
and I think everybody knew that's where this story was
headed a long time ago, really, But there's a lot
(01:00):
of interesting stuff around that, and we welcome to the show.
Are one of our favorite political analysts that exist anywhere
on the planet, lonhe Chen, David and Diane Stephie fellow
in American Public Policy Studies at the Hoover Institution and
the director of Domestic Policy Studies at Stanford University.
Speaker 1 (01:18):
Welcome to the show, Hey Jack, Good to be with you.
Pretty good. Where to start? Maybe here?
Speaker 3 (01:25):
One guest I had on earlier I hadn't seen the
latest polling was Platner way down in the polls against Collins.
Speaker 4 (01:33):
No.
Speaker 5 (01:33):
I think the polling was actually pretty competitive, okay, And
that's why Democrats were so keen to figure out what
to do about the situation, because they see the main
Senate race as being a critical part of their pathway
to try to take the majority of the Senate. It's
going to be a tough pathway for Democrats just because
of the states that are in play this cycle. But
(01:54):
I think they really felt that Plattner had an opportunity
to beat Susan Collins, and so this whole thing has
been very, very, very disruptive to their Democrat plans.
Speaker 3 (02:03):
Here's one of my thoughts on this, an interesting angle.
I was reading Mark Alpern's newsletter earlier today, and he
was making the point that these voters in Maine chose
this guy knowing most of it. You know, the most
recent pretty solid rape allegation is new, but a lot
(02:24):
of it was known, and they still chose them, Which
makes me wonder where we are on the character issue
with candidates across this country. As long as somebody's on
our team, do we care anything about their personal lives.
Speaker 5 (02:36):
Yeah, it's a great question. I mean, we heard this
over and over again. You know, you looked at the
different politicians who stood behind Graham Plattner even as allegations
came out.
Speaker 6 (02:46):
Not this one.
Speaker 5 (02:47):
I mean, this one obviously was a more extreme version,
but there were lots of similar allegations, and not just
those allegations, but also severe lapses in judgment and character.
You know, the idea that he'd have an offensive tattoo,
that was something. You know, there were a bunch of
stories about this guy that suggested he was not exactly
the most savory character. And the argument that basically supporters
(03:09):
of his used was well, you know, he's our guy,
and it doesn't really matter because look, you know, the
other side has a bunch of scoundrels too, so we're
going to run a scoundrel and it's not going to matter.
So I do think Jack, we're in a different era
in American politics. You know, if you think back to
the eighties, and nineties and even two thousands that the
character question did reflect in a much more different way
(03:32):
than it does today in today's politics. It's really come
down to what I call the shirts and skins era. Basically,
it just depends on if someone's on your side or not.
If someone's on your side, then what they've done is forgivable.
And you know, I think both sides have been guilty
of this, you.
Speaker 1 (03:46):
Know, in terms of the sexual stuff.
Speaker 3 (03:48):
Rapes a different case, but obviously, but the cheating on
your wife and that sort of lifestyle, from what I understand,
our European friends have always marveled we care about that
because they just don't care about your private sex life.
You know, obviously we're talking about legal stuff between consenting adults,
but in Europe they don't care about your private sex life,
(04:11):
whereas the United States we always have. So maybe we're
just moving into that sort of thinking.
Speaker 6 (04:15):
I suppose.
Speaker 5 (04:16):
I mean, I again, I don't want to dismiss it,
because I do think that there are elements of character
that are reflections on how how people will govern.
Speaker 3 (04:25):
I mean, right, sorry to interrupt you, but the fact
that this guy was on various hookup sites.
Speaker 1 (04:32):
Trying to get laid weeks after he was married. What
the heck is that?
Speaker 3 (04:38):
I mean, that's that's that's a different thing than some
of the affairs we've heard about in the past with
different totally but.
Speaker 5 (04:44):
I mean, just like Eric Swalwell, that was different too, right,
And and look at how long Swallwell really hung in
there until By the way, if you look at Swalwell's
exit video, not all that dissimilar from the Platiner one, right,
sort of disheveled saying look that this doesn't mean I'm guilt, YadA, YadA.
I mean, the whole thing is just remarkable if you
(05:05):
look at the severe defects in character that both of
these candidates exhibited.
Speaker 6 (05:10):
And how well known.
Speaker 5 (05:11):
A lot of this was right, And I think that's
part of the challenge, is that you had so many people,
whether it was Slowwell or certainly Platiner, who because he
wore the right jersey, we're willing to say, you know what,
it doesn't matter. And you know, the argument that they
would repeatedly use was the other side does it too,
And that's when you know that our politics have entered
(05:33):
a new era, and frankly, I think a more troubling time.
Speaker 1 (05:36):
Uh, you're the perfect guy to ask about this.
Speaker 3 (05:38):
So I assume the Democrats are going to take the
House for all kinds of different reasons historically, blah blah,
blah blah. But why the Senate is so close to
fifty to fifty and each seat matters so much?
Speaker 1 (05:50):
Why is it? Would it be such a big deal?
Speaker 3 (05:52):
What would be the difference between the Republicans controlling the
Senate or the Democrats controlling the Senate in the last
two years of Trump's last term.
Speaker 5 (06:00):
I think the crucial difference is really two things. One
is appointments and nominations. You know, the President makes a
whole bunch of nominations, and the Senate's the only chamber
that really advises and consents on those. And so if
Democrats were to control the Senate, that would make it
much harder for President Trump to fill his administration. I
presume the Democrats would blockade pretty much all of his nominees,
(06:22):
whether for courts or for executive positions. So that's number one,
And then number two is the legislative question. Right there's
not a whole lot of legislating happening right now. Congress
doesn't do a lot of that anymore, which is kind
of funny because anybody who studied the US Constitution will
know it's Congress's job to, I don't know, make laws, but.
Speaker 6 (06:39):
Didn't really do that anymore.
Speaker 5 (06:40):
But to the degree that they do, it tends to
require unified control of both the House and the Senate,
because if one, you know, one sort of party controls
both houses, then that creates an issue. Now, in this case,
it's interesting because if the Democrats do take the House,
then that piece is less relevant for the Senate because
you've already got a roade block there. The only way
(07:01):
for Trump to continue to legislate would be if Republicans
were able to pull off a miracle and hold onto
the House and hold onto the Senate.
Speaker 3 (07:09):
So I want to ask you about this about the
Democratic Party and specifically their progressive or socialist wing of
the Democratic Party. I don't know if you saw that
video that surfaced a few days back, Scott Wiener, San
Francisco political legend who's trying to get Nancy Pelosi's seat.
(07:29):
He's always been a big active part of anything LGBTQ
plus trans this sort of stuff, and he's a hero
to that crowd. He was at a big Pride event
and he got attacked by a bunch of other progressives
because he's been too friendly to Israel over the years.
And then I read some analysis that said, to my mind,
(07:53):
crazy is in the Democratic Party the center of gravity
is moved from the whole sexuality thing to the Jewish
Israel support thing. Do you think that's accurate and how
the deal is.
Speaker 5 (08:05):
That I do, Jack, this has become the new litmus
test in progressive politics, and it has moved from I mean,
we've seen the progression of this over the years, right
from issues of gender identity to race and ethnicity questions,
and now I do think it's a question that a
lot of Democratic progressive activists are asking, which has a
(08:26):
candidate received money from APAC, which is the political action
committee that supports causes aligned with Israeli Jewish issues. And
I think that has become the litmus test now for
a lot of Democrats out there, and the question is
have you taken that money? And the funny part of this, Jack,
(08:46):
is if you look back in Democratic Party politics, there
was a time back in the nineteen nineties and two thousands,
not to date myself, but there was a time when
that was worn as a badge of honor that a
lot of Democrats wanted to be perceived as being prostry,
certainly pro Jewish issues in the US, and that was
something that they wore proudly, and that has completely flipped
(09:08):
on its head. And I think it's a really disgusting
part of progressive politics in my view, the degree to
which some of this anti Semitism has been not just
tolerated but encouraged by elements of the progressive left. And
I think that's going to be a big challenge for
them going forward and could signal. The last thing I'll
say about this is a could signal of realignment. I
think of a lot of Jewish voters in the US
(09:30):
away from the Democratic Party.
Speaker 3 (09:31):
Well to the point to the point of not just
you know, we don't like what Israel is doing in
Gaza or whatever that debate they had in Michigan the
other night. That guy doesn't think Israel should exist running
against a mainstream Democrat.
Speaker 5 (09:47):
I mean, that's the problem is that, you know, it
starts with critiques of the Israeli government, which I mean, look,
people can have different opinions of how successful or unsuccessful
the current Israeli government has been that's a legitimate question.
But what is illegitimate, of course, is then using that
as a platform to basically say there should not be
a Jewish state. That to me is this disscussed and
(10:10):
I mean, it's disgusting. But it's also become frankly much
more common on the progressive left, to the point that
it is becoming a test of whether someone has taken
that position, and that is the litmus test that some
of these particularly democratic socialist organizations are using to endorse
or not endorse candidates. So it's really staggering how quickly this.
Speaker 1 (10:31):
Is to be I know, that's what I was about
to say.
Speaker 3 (10:33):
I can't believe that it's moved this far this fast
in my life, where you'd stand up running for office
and say I don't think the Jewish States should even exist,
and you.
Speaker 1 (10:42):
Might be the nominee.
Speaker 6 (10:44):
Yeah, oh, in fact, you might have a very good
chance of being the nominee. Right.
Speaker 5 (10:47):
I mean, you look at Zon Mamdani, You look at
some of the positions that this person is running against.
Karen vass In La Nitya Raman heard some of her positions.
It's remarkable to see and it's just not something I
thought I would see in my lifetime. You know, I
thought there was a basic consensus amongst both political parties
(11:08):
that America and the Jewish State of Israel are allies
and friends and we're going to do everything we can
to support the success of the Jewish state. That doesn't
seem to be the case anymore for some on the
progressive left.
Speaker 3 (11:19):
So, Lannie Jen, you are a smart, well spoken guy,
and I wanted to give you a couple of minutes too.
Speaker 1 (11:25):
And even though we're now.
Speaker 3 (11:26):
Five days out from the two hundred and fiftieth anniversary
of this country, give me a couple of minutes on
why you think America is exceptional. Maybe I'm putting words
in your mouth, whether or not you think America is exceptional,
and why pushing back against some of those detractors in
the socialist wing of the Democratic Party.
Speaker 5 (11:45):
Well, America is exceptional, There's just no question about it.
I mean, my family and I just get back from
a vacation. We went to Europe for a couple of weeks.
And yeah, there's a lot of things that are historical
and beautiful about Europe, but the whole time you're there,
you're realizing you know that it's not America. The amount
of innovation, ingenuity and creativity and drive of people is
(12:07):
just different. But I think what makes America different is
just this idea that you can have people from all
over the world coming to a country who you know,
may not speak the language, may not know much about
what America is, and they can make a life here,
and then they can have kids and grandkids that have
success far beyond the success that they had. That kind
of achievement and accomplishment. It's becoming less common, I will say,
(12:32):
but it is still something that distinguishes America in my
mind from other countries around the world.
Speaker 6 (12:37):
Is just the ability for people to come here.
Speaker 5 (12:39):
To make a life, to be successful, and to become
part of this American story, and it is it is
just the most exceptional place on earth. Jack, I really
I cringe when I hear people who make it their
job to look down on America who basically say, you know,
I'm not proud to be in America because of X,
(13:00):
Y and Z. It's like, if that's really the case,
if you're not proud to be in this country, to
be part of this country, there are lots of other
places around the world you can go to look down
on America.
Speaker 1 (13:10):
I agree. I've been talking about go fund me. I'll
buy you a ticket. We'll send you to.
Speaker 5 (13:14):
Exactly I mean, you know, we'll use your frequent fire
mouths and give you a one way ticket to places
around the world where there is no respect for the
same kind of values that we have in America. And
I and I just think that this is such a
special place and it is incumbent upon all of us
to protect this place as this incredible experiment that's been
(13:34):
so successful.
Speaker 6 (13:35):
There really is nowhere else around the world.
Speaker 5 (13:36):
Like I heard a great interview with Jensen Huang as
the founder of this company and video which if anybody
has stopping congratulations but but but he you know, he
basically talks about how his story would just not have
been possible anywhere else in the world. And this is
something that I've heard over and over again, and I
believe it because it's my story.
Speaker 6 (13:55):
Well, you know, things would not have been possible.
Speaker 5 (13:58):
For me in any other country but America. And that
that's why I believe in this country so much. And
that's why I do think our better days are ahead
of us, because it's just such an awesome place, Jack,
I mean it really is. And you know we've got
our share problems, of course, you know we've got some disagreements,
but fundamentally what a great place to live.
Speaker 6 (14:15):
Really, nowhere else better in the world.
Speaker 3 (14:17):
Lonnie Chen I knew you'd be great on that. Thank
you for your time today. I really appreciate it.
Speaker 6 (14:20):
Hey, thanks, Jack, had a good one.
Speaker 3 (14:22):
Yeah, And speaking of the guy runs n video, just
the fact that what seven of the top eight country
biggest companies in the world, most able companies in the
world are all started by foreigners who came to this land.
Speaker 1 (14:33):
Anyway, more on that later. I want to tell you
about a cogny, which.
Speaker 3 (14:35):
Is a really really good idea because your information is
floating around out there on the Internet in data broker
sites and all kinds of stuff, and that's why you
can get scammed and they sell it to other bad
people and all that sort of stuff, and cognity can
help you get that information off there help you.
Speaker 1 (14:51):
They do it.
Speaker 3 (14:52):
They use the law on their side to remove your
name and info from hundreds of databases and they keep
sending follow up requests so your data is removed, protecting
you from spams, scams and threats. They can't scam you
if they can't find you. Take your personal data back
within cogni I nd cog n I. It's that's how
it's spelled. You get sixty percent off the regular price
when you use the code armstrong and in cognity dot
(15:14):
com slash armstrong.
Speaker 1 (15:16):
That's sixty percent off.
Speaker 3 (15:16):
And you use the code armstrong and in cognity dot
com slash armstrong. I want to talk a little more
about American exceptionalism, something that I left out the other
day when we were talking about it, among other things.
Speaker 1 (15:26):
On the way stay.
Speaker 6 (15:27):
Here arm Strong, he yetni.
Speaker 3 (15:35):
So we're just talking a lot heat chan and got
onto the topic about American exceptionalism and our culture and
why this is the greatest country on earth and it is,
and the reason that if you want to start something new,
you come here, and because even with all our regulations
everything like that, it's still all of a lot better
in Europe and anywhere else, and you can start a
(15:56):
new company. And that's why you got SpaceX, and you
got Nvidia, and you got Apple and you got all
these different.
Speaker 1 (16:01):
Sorts of things. But it reminds me so I went
to Italy years ago. I was there. Hey, Gladys, you
still work here? Thank you? Sorry Gladys, maybe too much coffee.
Shouldn't have said that. Now she's crying. Hey, Michael, can
you put your arm around her again?
Speaker 6 (16:19):
All right?
Speaker 3 (16:23):
I was in Italy and uh, and picked up on
the lifestyle there, the fact that I don't know if
you know this, if you've never been, but they like
close everything down like around eleven o'clock in the morning
and don't open up again to one Like everybody just
takes a couple hour break in the middle of the day,
and everybody gets six weeks vacation like they do in
(16:43):
France and a lot of the European countries, and people
retire early and all this different sort of stuff. And
I remember when I was at LEAs with a younger
crowd and talking about why won't we do this in
the United States. This is so cool, We're so we
work so much, it's sorry to go. Yeah, here's the problem.
These countries can't sustain their own lifestyles. They've been running
(17:04):
out of money for decades. And the only reason that
they haven't been taken over by China or Russia is
because we protect them with our military and our productive society.
It doesn't actually work. You can't be that relaxed about
your productivity and survive as a country. And whether it's
Greece or Spain, or Italy or France, it's all coming
(17:25):
to an end.
Speaker 1 (17:26):
Or England. And I was talking to a buddy of mine.
Speaker 3 (17:30):
He's got this new job where he works with a
bunch of people from different countries, and they remark regularly
about how hard Americans work, and they think it's ridiculous
that Americans work so hard. Like this guy that was
from Mexico. When he gets off at five o'clock, he
turns off his phone. There's no texting him or email
in him. When he goes on vacation, you can't reach him.
(17:51):
And you Americans, where you allow your boss to reach
you on vacation. That's why we've had the number one
economy on planet Earth since I think eighteen seventy. It's
not an accident that we're so productive and so dominant
economically that we can provide the military protection for the
entire planet. That's one of the reasons, one of the
(18:14):
many ways that we're exceptional. I've got more on that later,
and some other news coming up about Iran brand new
Iran stuff, Armstrong.
Speaker 4 (18:21):
And Getty two.
Speaker 7 (18:22):
Essential Command confirms a second consecutive wave of strikes targeting
military military infrastructure in southern Iran, also coastally Ran. These
strikes have been described as more aggressive than the initial
wave that we saw earlier this week, sparked by attacks
on commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz. Tran has
responded by targeting neighboring nations including.
Speaker 1 (18:43):
Kuwait, Bahrain and Qatar.
Speaker 7 (18:45):
Now Iran taking up much of the talk in Turkey,
where President Trump just was for the NATO summit. There,
he said, the fragile ceasefire deals signed last month is over.
Speaker 8 (18:54):
It's sort of crazy, to be honest, with this Souded
gracing there a little bit out of it, but they
want to make.
Speaker 1 (19:01):
It do badly. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (19:04):
I was a little disappointed to hear that I'd predicted
yesterday morning or feared yesterday morning when I first saw
that we're attacking Iran again.
Speaker 1 (19:13):
And I was happy to see.
Speaker 3 (19:14):
Trump come out and say, uh, these people are liars
and scumbags. I don't know if you saw the video
where he was asked at the podium a couple weeks ago,
you said these are good, reasonable guys, and now you're
bombing them and say they're scum.
Speaker 1 (19:30):
What changed?
Speaker 3 (19:32):
And Trump said, I got to know them. And Rubio
was standing behind him in the Secretary of State and
started laughing, probably happy to hear Trump finally come around
to understand who.
Speaker 1 (19:43):
He's dealing with.
Speaker 3 (19:44):
But then last night on the plane, Trump saying, they
really want to deal bad No they.
Speaker 1 (19:48):
Don't, dude, No, they don't. They want to drag this
out longer.
Speaker 3 (19:53):
They want you to hold off the full on American
mite of the military so they can drag this out longer.
Speaker 1 (20:00):
They don't want a deal. Putin doesn't want a deal.
Speaker 3 (20:02):
How do you not get This drives me nuts. Here's
a different Fox report from Mark Tobin about what's going
on between US and Iran and their neighbors.
Speaker 9 (20:12):
For the first time now around showing defiance has fired
into Jordan. The US embassy staff was ordered to shelter
in place. Jordanians now say they've intercepted some eight missiles
that were fired into Jordan.
Speaker 6 (20:24):
No injuries from that. Now.
Speaker 9 (20:25):
This follows a night in which the US fired on
some ninety targets that were hitting Iran.
Speaker 6 (20:29):
Last night.
Speaker 9 (20:30):
That's an increase from eighty the night before. Airport runways,
missile launchers were among the targets, and we know that.
Speaker 6 (20:35):
A railroad bridge was hit.
Speaker 9 (20:37):
Iranian state media reported explosions in southern port cities, explosions
in Bashir, home to that massive nuclear power plant complex,
and explosions in port cities. We've seen video from the
Iranian port city Kabakhar.
Speaker 3 (20:48):
So people that I respect, pundits that I respect, say,
this has been some pretty significant hits.
Speaker 1 (20:53):
These are not just.
Speaker 3 (20:55):
Demonstrations of a response and that sort of thing that
some times happens. These were some serious military hits. And
Trump said when he was asked, are we back at war?
And he said, no, we're not bagg of WARO. Sure,
it looks like we're bagg of war. This is like
Operation Enduring Freedom looking strikes for two days in a row.
Speaker 1 (21:19):
And we got a text.
Speaker 3 (21:20):
Earlier from somebody who lives near an air force base
and three of the big giant B one B two
bombers took off from there. I don't know if that
means anything, but there's no reason to think we aren't
going to continue to hit Iran. I don't know if
that would bring them to the negotiating table or not.
As mentioned yesterday, according to Wall Street Journal, there had
been zero headway made in the nuclear talks. None, none,
(21:44):
So we loosened up the purse strings. Iran started making
money again off oil. We cut that off two days ago,
but there for a couple of weeks they got to
make money off of oil with the guarantee from the
lot buying Iranians that they would sit down and be
serious about nuclear talks. And it turns out, of course,
(22:06):
they weren't serious about it, and zero headway has been made,
and they didn't get into any of the details. But
enriched uranium or inspections or any of that sort of
stuff a surprise to no one, but apparently Trump and
Jdvans I just I don't I'm mystified. I don't believe
they don't know who they're dealing with. There's something else
going on here. I don't quite know what it is.
(22:29):
Maybe we won't know for years till the books are
written by the people behind the scenes. Trump was asked
some questions about.
Speaker 1 (22:37):
Ending the war, the war going on? Where we are now?
Speaker 5 (22:40):
Why are you apparently unable to end the Iran war?
Speaker 8 (22:45):
So I think we're doing just the opposite. The Iran
War has been a tremendous military success. And you know,
I can only answer the question by saying they're not going.
Speaker 6 (22:54):
To have a nuclear weapon.
Speaker 8 (22:55):
I could we uh denuclearize Iran, and that's happened. They
will never have a nuclear weapon.
Speaker 1 (23:03):
I sure hope that's true. And they go on, if I.
Speaker 8 (23:06):
Weren't president, Israel wouldn't exist. And we did it two
times when the g jc POA, the Obama deal, when
that was originally conceived, everything went to Urn one point
seven billion in cash, hundreds of billions of dollars. They
thought they could buy peace with these people.
Speaker 1 (23:24):
You can't do that.
Speaker 8 (23:26):
So the big thing we have is more important than
anything we can talk about, is you can't let lunatics
have nuclear weapons. And we've stopped that.
Speaker 1 (23:36):
I hope, like I said so.
Speaker 3 (23:38):
The Associated Press writes the confusion and uncertainty in Trump's
mixed messaging and his approval of back to back military
strikes leave major questions, i'd say, about what comes next
in the conflict. Just weeks after difficult diplomacy to reach
even an initial deal between the longtime adversaries, the whip
sawing rhetoric could be a strategy to increase the pressure
(24:00):
you're on Turan to stop attacking ships transporting oil and
natural gas in the Strait and bend to US demands.
Whether it's a negotiation tactic or a signal of an
escalation in fighting, Mediators are scrambling to save the deal,
and the actions risk further inflaming tensions, which could spell
problems for Republicans in November's midterm elections if gas prices
(24:20):
stay high. That's stuff about the way this affects the
midterms I always think is just dumb. Personally, the Democrats
are going to take the House Historically, that's what's supposed
to happen. Maybe they get more House seats because of
the war. I don't know, but it's definitely Republicans are
not gonna don't have any chance of hanging onto the
House if this war gets wrapped up.
Speaker 1 (24:41):
I don't think.
Speaker 3 (24:43):
And again, if our war policy around the world is
we can't go to war with anybody. If gas gets
kind of expensive for a summer, that's just no way
to run a war or a country. So that's disappointing too.
I have no idea where this is going. Neither does
anybody else. Time will tell I guess we'll see the
(25:06):
other war that we're involved in. We're not actually fighting
this war, but we are involved with Ukrainian Russia. Obviously,
this is new news. Ukrainian drones have hit more Russian
oil facilities and sent two oil tankers a blaze in
the Sea of Azov. This is a day after President
Trump pledged to grant Kiva license to manufacture the Patriot
(25:29):
Air Defense System to protect its cities. If you hadn't
heard the news, that's a big deal. We're gonna let
Kiev build the Patriot Air Defense System, which is the
best air defense system on Earth, which will help protect
the capital against anything any ballistic missiles that Putin wants
to send their way. And today drones hitting more of
(25:51):
the Russian oil facilities. You want to talk about a
gas crisis or an oil crisis, That's what they got
going on in Russia right now. And their population is
really unhappy with the long lines and the closed gas
stations and the price of gas and that sort of stuff,
which of course could turn people against the war in Ukraine.
I hope Ukraine's ability to reach out and disrupt their
(26:14):
oil refinery industry is really something and that's only going
to grow.
Speaker 1 (26:19):
What a war to watch?
Speaker 3 (26:20):
That is definitely seems like Ukraine is on the front
foot there, so both wars are an interesting spot. I
like the direction Ukraine Russia is going a lot better
than I like the direction US Iran is going. But oh,
by the way, one more thing, since we're talking about Iran.
Rama Manual he was Barack Obama's chief of staff. He
(26:44):
was the mayor of Chicago. He is a very smart
moderate Democrat who I'm shocked has not seriously run for
president before. He is going to run for president this time.
But does the Democratic Party want a Democrat at this point? Well,
he has always stood with Israel. He's a Jewish guy himself.
(27:05):
He's over in Israel giving some strong speeches against Benjamin
Netan Yahoo. I think he's trying to get his anti
net and Yah who he's trying to do. He's trying
to walk a fine line of supporting Israel, like mainstream
Democrats always have and mainstream Republicans always have, while being
critical of their current policies, to try to appease the
(27:28):
anti Semite. I will call them left in the Democratic Party.
I don't know if that's going to work or not.
I don't know if when it comes to a debate stage,
the fact that ram Emanuel supports Israel's right to exist
and takes money from Apak, I don't know if he
has a shot a getting the nomination, But time will
tell him that one too. Man, If you can't get
the nomination in the Democratic Party anymore by believing Israel
(27:51):
should exist as a country, we are in a whole
new era. Different topic coming up in a little bit.
Just read an interesting article about those gop ones. There's
weight loss drugs and all the different things they can do.
And what is that doing to some people's attitudes about
life or your your ability to even to try to
(28:14):
fight or resist bad things, or we all or we're
gonna start turning to pills rather than having any willpower whatsoever.
Interesting question on that. And then I also just came
across the term I saw up on the TV, should
you get an airport divorce?
Speaker 1 (28:30):
I don't know what an airport divorce is.
Speaker 3 (28:32):
Sounds like one of those cutesy terms and a phenomenon
just made up by mainstream media. But I will google
that and I'll figure out what it is. And we'll
talk about it and the gop ones when we come back.
Speaker 1 (28:50):
Meanwhile, and Huey Lewis News.
Speaker 4 (28:53):
I can't hear music. Music is not part of my
life anymore. I can't find pitch in the music. See
that technology that I use on my cochlear implant. It
breaks everything down into digital bits. Speech is easier to
listen to the music. The cochlear, which is my only
reliable form of hearing, distorts the music a little bit
(29:14):
in the same way it distorts people's voices. It makes
pitch impossible to hear. I can hear conversation. Fight pull
these things out. I'm deaf.
Speaker 1 (29:23):
I didn't know that.
Speaker 3 (29:24):
So that's Shuey Lewis, who listen to the news, one
of the biggest musical acts the entire eighties, and he
went deaf a while back. Did he go deaf because
of too much loud music?
Speaker 6 (29:36):
Do we know?
Speaker 3 (29:36):
Or is it just one of the random things that
can happen to anybody. A lot of your musicians are deaf.
It's because they were standing in front of crazy loud
speakers every night for years and years and years, like
Pete Townsend and the Who. But he's got one of
those cochlear implants like Rush Limbaugh got. I don't know
if I've ever known anybody that had one of those.
(29:58):
I didn't know that you couldn't hear me music with them.
Though you can hear speech fine, which obviously would be
a heck of a gift compared to being completely deaf.
But you can't hear music or pitch anyway.
Speaker 1 (30:07):
I'll be darned.
Speaker 3 (30:10):
Speaking to musicians. Huey Lewis is still alive. Bonnie Tyler
is not. She had a total eclipse of her heart
last night at age seventy five. Now now you don't
like that, Michael, No.
Speaker 1 (30:19):
Soon, too soon.
Speaker 3 (30:23):
I read the entire lyrics of that song earlier in
the show, many of which I didn't know. I've been
belting that song out in my car or radio studios
back when I was a DJ for decades, and some
of the lines I had completely wrong. She didn't write
the song to Jim steinem production. He wrote all your
schmaltzy songs of the eighties, seventies and eighties, all your
big ones. He was the one behind like your big
(30:46):
meat loaf songs. You know you're really schmaltzy. Meat Loves
two out of three Bad. You know those kind of songs,
Total Clips of the Heart. Once you recognize that this guy,
Jim Steinum, you can pick those songs out easily when
you hear him. Anyway, he was behind Total Clips of
the Heart, a giant hit for Bonnie Tyler, and one
(31:06):
of this is what I'm suggesting little for Little Friday tonight.
If you're out at the bar, at a karaoke bar,
get up there on stage quite drunk and sing Total
Eclips of the Heart in honor of Bonnie Tyler, dead
at the age of seventy five. I don't know if
I buy this article before I get to what an
airport divorce is? What's an airport divorce? I don't know
(31:27):
if I buy this article in the New York Times,
How golp ones feed our sick culture. This is what
this writer in the New York Times is trying to
convince us that these glp ones, these are any of
these drugs or zembic.
Speaker 1 (31:40):
Or Zegovni or whatever they're calling.
Speaker 3 (31:44):
Where people are losing weight and really really loving it,
and they're very, very popular, and and I know people
personally who it's changed their lives and they couldn't be happier.
How it's actually a bad thing because it's feeding our
sick culture of prioritizing thinness over fatness, and all it's
doing is driving home the point that being thin is better,
(32:08):
and you've got a choice out there, and if you're fat,
it's because you eat too much, you refuse take this medicine,
et cetera, et cetera.
Speaker 1 (32:14):
C I don't know if I buy this.
Speaker 3 (32:16):
Like I said, I know people are very very happy
that for the first time in a very long time
they're thinner and feeling better and looking better and have
more self confidence and all the different things that go
with that. I mean, technically, I get the argument it
does kind of feed that culture in that you wouldn't
(32:39):
lose weight. I guess if you're really overweight, you got
to lose weight for health reasons. But if you're just
kind of overweight, you're probably mostly losing weight because you
want to look better, for your ego, to get a mate,
for all the reasons we all want to look better,
all the reasons we diet and go to the gym
outside of health reasons. Here's some stunning statistics around that, though,
(33:03):
and again this is from the New York Times in
this particular article. Who uses this article uses the term
patriarchy twice, So I'm a little suspect on any article
to use their term patriarchar Yes, it's men in the
patriarchy that have caused society to think thin is better
than fat. That or just all humans everywhere on Earth
just automatically, biologically, genetically prefer thin to fat.
Speaker 1 (33:28):
We just do.
Speaker 3 (33:29):
It's not the patriarchy. It's not a flaw, I don't think.
But these stats are pretty amazing. Among women who are
single when they started on the golp ones, the probability
of being married or living with a partner goes up
eighteen percentage points overall, and twenty nine points over six
or more quarters, so that'd be a year and a
(33:51):
half or more. Your likelihood of having a romantic partner
or getting married goes up thirty points going on the
golp ones over a year and a half.
Speaker 1 (34:05):
That's something that's too bad.
Speaker 3 (34:08):
Your employment rate rises for people who are overweight going
on the golp ones by almost thirty points after a
year and a half. Make more money easier to get
a job if you're thinner than if you're overweight.
Speaker 1 (34:25):
I don't know.
Speaker 3 (34:25):
I've never been in a position to hire anybody where
I would have cared about your weight. Haven't been in
a position to hire anybody in a very long time.
I guess Joe and I do we have a role
and who's on our staff and everything like that. We've
never cared about weight. I don't know if I buy
those stats again. I don't know if I trust any
(34:46):
article that uses the term patriarchy.
Speaker 1 (34:48):
Ever. What's an airport divorce? See what you think of this?
Speaker 3 (34:55):
An airport divorce is a popular travel trend. Is it
not an actual that says there in parentheses? Where couples
temporarily split up at the airport after you go through
security to reduce stress and avoid arguments before a flight.
I don't know if you If it's to avoid arguments,
your relationship really isn't that good. If like just being
(35:17):
around each other for an hour before you fly, you're
gonna get into a fight.
Speaker 1 (35:21):
But this makes sense to me. Different people have different styles.
Speaker 3 (35:24):
Some people like to go through all the shops, walk
around and look at the crap in the shops. Some
people like me, like to find the quietest spot in
the airport and sit down and read. If you hate,
If you really don't want to sit down and read,
you'd rather walk around, well, then have.
Speaker 1 (35:38):
An airport divorce.
Speaker 3 (35:40):
Using my finger quotes and one of he walks around
the shops and gets a cup of coffee and looks
at those neck pillows and decides whether you should buy
another one, or if you need a T shirt that
says Cleveland because you're at the Cleveland Airport. Every airport
sells a T shirt with the name of the town
on it. I don't know how many they sell, but
(36:01):
as it says in here, it's not a sign that
your marriage is in trouble if you get an airport divorce.
I have a feeling that happily married people or normal
people in general, come to these conclusions on their own.
I'm gonna sit here and read. Okay, I'm gonna go
look around the shops.
Speaker 1 (36:17):
End of story.
Speaker 3 (36:18):
I don't know if it need a cute name like
airport divorce or not. If you miss a segment of
this show, get the podcast Armstrong and Getty on demand.
You should subscribe. Then you just automatically get each segment.
We got more to Go an hour four stick around
Armstrong and Getty
Broadcasting live from the Abraham Lincoln Radio Studio of the
George Washington Broadcast Center, Jack Armstrong and Joe Ketty Armstrong
and Katty and now he Armstrong and Hetty.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
We are suspending campaign operations. This is incredibly difficult because
I know that some will think it's an admission of kilt,
and it most certainly is not. We're not doing it
because of the allegations. We're doing it because of the
structures that are being taken away from us by those
in power.
Speaker 3 (00:39):
Those in power like Bernie Sanders and zoron Mum Dannie.
I mean, when Bernie and the socialist communist mayor of
New York have turned on you, then you really got
no friends. So it's that Graham Platiner dude, and he
got out, and everybody knew he was going to get out,
and I think everybody knew that's where this story was
headed a long time ago, really, But there's a lot
(01:00):
of interesting stuff around that, and we welcome to the show.
Are one of our favorite political analysts that exist anywhere
on the planet, lonhe Chen, David and Diane Stephie fellow
in American Public Policy Studies at the Hoover Institution and
the director of Domestic Policy Studies at Stanford University.
Speaker 1 (01:18):
Welcome to the show, Hey Jack, Good to be with you.
Pretty good. Where to start? Maybe here?
Speaker 3 (01:25):
One guest I had on earlier I hadn't seen the
latest polling was Platner way down in the polls against Collins.
Speaker 4 (01:33):
No.
Speaker 5 (01:33):
I think the polling was actually pretty competitive, okay, And
that's why Democrats were so keen to figure out what
to do about the situation, because they see the main
Senate race as being a critical part of their pathway
to try to take the majority of the Senate. It's
going to be a tough pathway for Democrats just because
of the states that are in play this cycle. But
(01:54):
I think they really felt that Plattner had an opportunity
to beat Susan Collins, and so this whole thing has
been very, very, very disruptive to their Democrat plans.
Speaker 3 (02:03):
Here's one of my thoughts on this, an interesting angle.
I was reading Mark Alpern's newsletter earlier today, and he
was making the point that these voters in Maine chose
this guy knowing most of it. You know, the most
recent pretty solid rape allegation is new, but a lot
(02:24):
of it was known, and they still chose them, Which
makes me wonder where we are on the character issue
with candidates across this country. As long as somebody's on
our team, do we care anything about their personal lives.
Speaker 5 (02:36):
Yeah, it's a great question. I mean, we heard this
over and over again. You know, you looked at the
different politicians who stood behind Graham Plattner even as allegations
came out.
Speaker 6 (02:46):
Not this one.
Speaker 5 (02:47):
I mean, this one obviously was a more extreme version,
but there were lots of similar allegations, and not just
those allegations, but also severe lapses in judgment and character.
You know, the idea that he'd have an offensive tattoo,
that was something. You know, there were a bunch of
stories about this guy that suggested he was not exactly
the most savory character. And the argument that basically supporters
(03:09):
of his used was well, you know, he's our guy,
and it doesn't really matter because look, you know, the
other side has a bunch of scoundrels too, so we're
going to run a scoundrel and it's not going to matter.
So I do think Jack, we're in a different era
in American politics. You know, if you think back to
the eighties, and nineties and even two thousands that the
character question did reflect in a much more different way
(03:32):
than it does today in today's politics. It's really come
down to what I call the shirts and skins era. Basically,
it just depends on if someone's on your side or not.
If someone's on your side, then what they've done is forgivable.
And you know, I think both sides have been guilty
of this, you.
Speaker 1 (03:46):
Know, in terms of the sexual stuff.
Speaker 3 (03:48):
Rapes a different case, but obviously, but the cheating on
your wife and that sort of lifestyle, from what I understand,
our European friends have always marveled we care about that
because they just don't care about your private sex life.
You know, obviously we're talking about legal stuff between consenting adults,
but in Europe they don't care about your private sex life,
(04:11):
whereas the United States we always have. So maybe we're
just moving into that sort of thinking.
Speaker 6 (04:15):
I suppose.
Speaker 5 (04:16):
I mean, I again, I don't want to dismiss it,
because I do think that there are elements of character
that are reflections on how how people will govern.
Speaker 3 (04:25):
I mean, right, sorry to interrupt you, but the fact
that this guy was on various hookup sites.
Speaker 1 (04:32):
Trying to get laid weeks after he was married. What
the heck is that?
Speaker 3 (04:38):
I mean, that's that's that's a different thing than some
of the affairs we've heard about in the past with
different totally but.
Speaker 5 (04:44):
I mean, just like Eric Swalwell, that was different too, right,
And and look at how long Swallwell really hung in
there until By the way, if you look at Swalwell's
exit video, not all that dissimilar from the Platiner one, right,
sort of disheveled saying look that this doesn't mean I'm guilt, YadA, YadA.
I mean, the whole thing is just remarkable if you
(05:05):
look at the severe defects in character that both of
these candidates exhibited.
Speaker 6 (05:10):
And how well known.
Speaker 5 (05:11):
A lot of this was right, And I think that's
part of the challenge, is that you had so many people,
whether it was Slowwell or certainly Platiner, who because he
wore the right jersey, we're willing to say, you know what,
it doesn't matter. And you know, the argument that they
would repeatedly use was the other side does it too,
And that's when you know that our politics have entered
(05:33):
a new era, and frankly, I think a more troubling time.
Speaker 1 (05:36):
Uh, you're the perfect guy to ask about this.
Speaker 3 (05:38):
So I assume the Democrats are going to take the
House for all kinds of different reasons historically, blah blah,
blah blah. But why the Senate is so close to
fifty to fifty and each seat matters so much?
Speaker 1 (05:50):
Why is it? Would it be such a big deal?
Speaker 3 (05:52):
What would be the difference between the Republicans controlling the
Senate or the Democrats controlling the Senate in the last
two years of Trump's last term.
Speaker 5 (06:00):
I think the crucial difference is really two things. One
is appointments and nominations. You know, the President makes a
whole bunch of nominations, and the Senate's the only chamber
that really advises and consents on those. And so if
Democrats were to control the Senate, that would make it
much harder for President Trump to fill his administration. I
presume the Democrats would blockade pretty much all of his nominees,
(06:22):
whether for courts or for executive positions. So that's number one,
And then number two is the legislative question. Right there's
not a whole lot of legislating happening right now. Congress
doesn't do a lot of that anymore, which is kind
of funny because anybody who studied the US Constitution will
know it's Congress's job to, I don't know, make laws, but.
Speaker 6 (06:39):
Didn't really do that anymore.
Speaker 5 (06:40):
But to the degree that they do, it tends to
require unified control of both the House and the Senate,
because if one, you know, one sort of party controls
both houses, then that creates an issue. Now, in this case,
it's interesting because if the Democrats do take the House,
then that piece is less relevant for the Senate because
you've already got a roade block there. The only way
(07:01):
for Trump to continue to legislate would be if Republicans
were able to pull off a miracle and hold onto
the House and hold onto the Senate.
Speaker 3 (07:09):
So I want to ask you about this about the
Democratic Party and specifically their progressive or socialist wing of
the Democratic Party. I don't know if you saw that
video that surfaced a few days back, Scott Wiener, San
Francisco political legend who's trying to get Nancy Pelosi's seat.
(07:29):
He's always been a big active part of anything LGBTQ
plus trans this sort of stuff, and he's a hero
to that crowd. He was at a big Pride event
and he got attacked by a bunch of other progressives
because he's been too friendly to Israel over the years.
And then I read some analysis that said, to my mind,
(07:53):
crazy is in the Democratic Party the center of gravity
is moved from the whole sexuality thing to the Jewish
Israel support thing. Do you think that's accurate and how
the deal is.
Speaker 5 (08:05):
That I do, Jack, this has become the new litmus
test in progressive politics, and it has moved from I mean,
we've seen the progression of this over the years, right
from issues of gender identity to race and ethnicity questions,
and now I do think it's a question that a
lot of Democratic progressive activists are asking, which has a
(08:26):
candidate received money from APAC, which is the political action
committee that supports causes aligned with Israeli Jewish issues. And
I think that has become the litmus test now for
a lot of Democrats out there, and the question is
have you taken that money? And the funny part of this, Jack,
(08:46):
is if you look back in Democratic Party politics, there
was a time back in the nineteen nineties and two thousands,
not to date myself, but there was a time when
that was worn as a badge of honor that a
lot of Democrats wanted to be perceived as being prostry,
certainly pro Jewish issues in the US, and that was
something that they wore proudly, and that has completely flipped
(09:08):
on its head. And I think it's a really disgusting
part of progressive politics in my view, the degree to
which some of this anti Semitism has been not just
tolerated but encouraged by elements of the progressive left. And
I think that's going to be a big challenge for
them going forward and could signal. The last thing I'll
say about this is a could signal of realignment. I
think of a lot of Jewish voters in the US
(09:30):
away from the Democratic Party.
Speaker 3 (09:31):
Well to the point to the point of not just
you know, we don't like what Israel is doing in
Gaza or whatever that debate they had in Michigan the
other night. That guy doesn't think Israel should exist running
against a mainstream Democrat.
Speaker 5 (09:47):
I mean, that's the problem is that, you know, it
starts with critiques of the Israeli government, which I mean, look,
people can have different opinions of how successful or unsuccessful
the current Israeli government has been that's a legitimate question.
But what is illegitimate, of course, is then using that
as a platform to basically say there should not be
a Jewish state. That to me is this disscussed and
(10:10):
I mean, it's disgusting. But it's also become frankly much
more common on the progressive left, to the point that
it is becoming a test of whether someone has taken
that position, and that is the litmus test that some
of these particularly democratic socialist organizations are using to endorse
or not endorse candidates. So it's really staggering how quickly this.
Speaker 1 (10:31):
Is to be I know, that's what I was about
to say.
Speaker 3 (10:33):
I can't believe that it's moved this far this fast
in my life, where you'd stand up running for office
and say I don't think the Jewish States should even exist,
and you.
Speaker 1 (10:42):
Might be the nominee.
Speaker 6 (10:44):
Yeah, oh, in fact, you might have a very good
chance of being the nominee. Right.
Speaker 5 (10:47):
I mean, you look at Zon Mamdani, You look at
some of the positions that this person is running against.
Karen vass In La Nitya Raman heard some of her positions.
It's remarkable to see and it's just not something I
thought I would see in my lifetime. You know, I
thought there was a basic consensus amongst both political parties
(11:08):
that America and the Jewish State of Israel are allies
and friends and we're going to do everything we can
to support the success of the Jewish state. That doesn't
seem to be the case anymore for some on the
progressive left.
Speaker 3 (11:19):
So, Lannie Jen, you are a smart, well spoken guy,
and I wanted to give you a couple of minutes too.
Speaker 1 (11:25):
And even though we're now.
Speaker 3 (11:26):
Five days out from the two hundred and fiftieth anniversary
of this country, give me a couple of minutes on
why you think America is exceptional. Maybe I'm putting words
in your mouth, whether or not you think America is exceptional,
and why pushing back against some of those detractors in
the socialist wing of the Democratic Party.
Speaker 5 (11:45):
Well, America is exceptional, There's just no question about it.
I mean, my family and I just get back from
a vacation. We went to Europe for a couple of weeks.
And yeah, there's a lot of things that are historical
and beautiful about Europe, but the whole time you're there,
you're realizing you know that it's not America. The amount
of innovation, ingenuity and creativity and drive of people is
(12:07):
just different. But I think what makes America different is
just this idea that you can have people from all
over the world coming to a country who you know,
may not speak the language, may not know much about
what America is, and they can make a life here,
and then they can have kids and grandkids that have
success far beyond the success that they had. That kind
of achievement and accomplishment. It's becoming less common, I will say,
(12:32):
but it is still something that distinguishes America in my
mind from other countries around the world.
Speaker 6 (12:37):
Is just the ability for people to come here.
Speaker 5 (12:39):
To make a life, to be successful, and to become
part of this American story, and it is it is
just the most exceptional place on earth. Jack, I really
I cringe when I hear people who make it their
job to look down on America who basically say, you know,
I'm not proud to be in America because of X,
(13:00):
Y and Z. It's like, if that's really the case,
if you're not proud to be in this country, to
be part of this country, there are lots of other
places around the world you can go to look down
on America.
Speaker 1 (13:10):
I agree. I've been talking about go fund me. I'll
buy you a ticket. We'll send you to.
Speaker 5 (13:14):
Exactly I mean, you know, we'll use your frequent fire
mouths and give you a one way ticket to places
around the world where there is no respect for the
same kind of values that we have in America. And
I and I just think that this is such a
special place and it is incumbent upon all of us
to protect this place as this incredible experiment that's been
(13:34):
so successful.
Speaker 6 (13:35):
There really is nowhere else around the world.
Speaker 5 (13:36):
Like I heard a great interview with Jensen Huang as
the founder of this company and video which if anybody
has stopping congratulations but but but he you know, he
basically talks about how his story would just not have
been possible anywhere else in the world. And this is
something that I've heard over and over again, and I
believe it because it's my story.
Speaker 6 (13:55):
Well, you know, things would not have been possible.
Speaker 5 (13:58):
For me in any other country but America. And that
that's why I believe in this country so much. And
that's why I do think our better days are ahead
of us, because it's just such an awesome place, Jack,
I mean it really is. And you know we've got
our share problems, of course, you know we've got some disagreements,
but fundamentally what a great place to live.
Speaker 6 (14:15):
Really, nowhere else better in the world.
Speaker 3 (14:17):
Lonnie Chen I knew you'd be great on that. Thank
you for your time today. I really appreciate it.
Speaker 6 (14:20):
Hey, thanks, Jack, had a good one.
Speaker 3 (14:22):
Yeah, And speaking of the guy runs n video, just
the fact that what seven of the top eight country
biggest companies in the world, most able companies in the
world are all started by foreigners who came to this land.
Speaker 1 (14:33):
Anyway, more on that later. I want to tell you
about a cogny, which.
Speaker 3 (14:35):
Is a really really good idea because your information is
floating around out there on the Internet in data broker
sites and all kinds of stuff, and that's why you
can get scammed and they sell it to other bad
people and all that sort of stuff, and cognity can
help you get that information off there help you.
Speaker 1 (14:51):
They do it.
Speaker 3 (14:52):
They use the law on their side to remove your
name and info from hundreds of databases and they keep
sending follow up requests so your data is removed, protecting
you from spams, scams and threats. They can't scam you
if they can't find you. Take your personal data back
within cogni I nd cog n I. It's that's how
it's spelled. You get sixty percent off the regular price
when you use the code armstrong and in cognity dot
(15:14):
com slash armstrong.
Speaker 1 (15:16):
That's sixty percent off.
Speaker 3 (15:16):
And you use the code armstrong and in cognity dot
com slash armstrong. I want to talk a little more
about American exceptionalism, something that I left out the other
day when we were talking about it, among other things.
Speaker 1 (15:26):
On the way stay.
Speaker 6 (15:27):
Here arm Strong, he yetni.
Speaker 3 (15:35):
So we're just talking a lot heat chan and got
onto the topic about American exceptionalism and our culture and
why this is the greatest country on earth and it is,
and the reason that if you want to start something new,
you come here, and because even with all our regulations
everything like that, it's still all of a lot better
in Europe and anywhere else, and you can start a
(15:56):
new company. And that's why you got SpaceX, and you
got Nvidia, and you got Apple and you got all
these different.
Speaker 1 (16:01):
Sorts of things. But it reminds me so I went
to Italy years ago. I was there. Hey, Gladys, you
still work here? Thank you? Sorry Gladys, maybe too much coffee.
Shouldn't have said that. Now she's crying. Hey, Michael, can
you put your arm around her again?
Speaker 6 (16:19):
All right?
Speaker 3 (16:23):
I was in Italy and uh, and picked up on
the lifestyle there, the fact that I don't know if
you know this, if you've never been, but they like
close everything down like around eleven o'clock in the morning
and don't open up again to one Like everybody just
takes a couple hour break in the middle of the day,
and everybody gets six weeks vacation like they do in
(16:43):
France and a lot of the European countries, and people
retire early and all this different sort of stuff. And
I remember when I was at LEAs with a younger
crowd and talking about why won't we do this in
the United States. This is so cool, We're so we
work so much, it's sorry to go. Yeah, here's the problem.
These countries can't sustain their own lifestyles. They've been running
(17:04):
out of money for decades. And the only reason that
they haven't been taken over by China or Russia is
because we protect them with our military and our productive society.
It doesn't actually work. You can't be that relaxed about
your productivity and survive as a country. And whether it's
Greece or Spain, or Italy or France, it's all coming
(17:25):
to an end.
Speaker 1 (17:26):
Or England. And I was talking to a buddy of mine.
Speaker 3 (17:30):
He's got this new job where he works with a
bunch of people from different countries, and they remark regularly
about how hard Americans work, and they think it's ridiculous
that Americans work so hard. Like this guy that was
from Mexico. When he gets off at five o'clock, he
turns off his phone. There's no texting him or email
in him. When he goes on vacation, you can't reach him.
(17:51):
And you Americans, where you allow your boss to reach
you on vacation. That's why we've had the number one
economy on planet Earth since I think eighteen seventy. It's
not an accident that we're so productive and so dominant
economically that we can provide the military protection for the
entire planet. That's one of the reasons, one of the
(18:14):
many ways that we're exceptional. I've got more on that later,
and some other news coming up about Iran brand new
Iran stuff, Armstrong.
Speaker 4 (18:21):
And Getty two.
Speaker 7 (18:22):
Essential Command confirms a second consecutive wave of strikes targeting
military military infrastructure in southern Iran, also coastally Ran. These
strikes have been described as more aggressive than the initial
wave that we saw earlier this week, sparked by attacks
on commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz. Tran has
responded by targeting neighboring nations including.
Speaker 1 (18:43):
Kuwait, Bahrain and Qatar.
Speaker 7 (18:45):
Now Iran taking up much of the talk in Turkey,
where President Trump just was for the NATO summit. There,
he said, the fragile ceasefire deals signed last month is over.
Speaker 8 (18:54):
It's sort of crazy, to be honest, with this Souded
gracing there a little bit out of it, but they
want to make.
Speaker 1 (19:01):
It do badly. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (19:04):
I was a little disappointed to hear that I'd predicted
yesterday morning or feared yesterday morning when I first saw
that we're attacking Iran again.
Speaker 1 (19:13):
And I was happy to see.
Speaker 3 (19:14):
Trump come out and say, uh, these people are liars
and scumbags. I don't know if you saw the video
where he was asked at the podium a couple weeks ago,
you said these are good, reasonable guys, and now you're
bombing them and say they're scum.
Speaker 1 (19:30):
What changed?
Speaker 3 (19:32):
And Trump said, I got to know them. And Rubio
was standing behind him in the Secretary of State and
started laughing, probably happy to hear Trump finally come around
to understand who.
Speaker 1 (19:43):
He's dealing with.
Speaker 3 (19:44):
But then last night on the plane, Trump saying, they
really want to deal bad No they.
Speaker 1 (19:48):
Don't, dude, No, they don't. They want to drag this
out longer.
Speaker 3 (19:53):
They want you to hold off the full on American
mite of the military so they can drag this out longer.
Speaker 1 (20:00):
They don't want a deal. Putin doesn't want a deal.
Speaker 3 (20:02):
How do you not get This drives me nuts. Here's
a different Fox report from Mark Tobin about what's going
on between US and Iran and their neighbors.
Speaker 9 (20:12):
For the first time now around showing defiance has fired
into Jordan. The US embassy staff was ordered to shelter
in place. Jordanians now say they've intercepted some eight missiles
that were fired into Jordan.
Speaker 6 (20:24):
No injuries from that. Now.
Speaker 9 (20:25):
This follows a night in which the US fired on
some ninety targets that were hitting Iran.
Speaker 6 (20:29):
Last night.
Speaker 9 (20:30):
That's an increase from eighty the night before. Airport runways,
missile launchers were among the targets, and we know that.
Speaker 6 (20:35):
A railroad bridge was hit.
Speaker 9 (20:37):
Iranian state media reported explosions in southern port cities, explosions
in Bashir, home to that massive nuclear power plant complex,
and explosions in port cities. We've seen video from the
Iranian port city Kabakhar.
Speaker 3 (20:48):
So people that I respect, pundits that I respect, say,
this has been some pretty significant hits.
Speaker 1 (20:53):
These are not just.
Speaker 3 (20:55):
Demonstrations of a response and that sort of thing that
some times happens. These were some serious military hits. And
Trump said when he was asked, are we back at war?
And he said, no, we're not bagg of WARO. Sure,
it looks like we're bagg of war. This is like
Operation Enduring Freedom looking strikes for two days in a row.
Speaker 1 (21:19):
And we got a text.
Speaker 3 (21:20):
Earlier from somebody who lives near an air force base
and three of the big giant B one B two
bombers took off from there. I don't know if that
means anything, but there's no reason to think we aren't
going to continue to hit Iran. I don't know if
that would bring them to the negotiating table or not.
As mentioned yesterday, according to Wall Street Journal, there had
been zero headway made in the nuclear talks. None, none,
(21:44):
So we loosened up the purse strings. Iran started making
money again off oil. We cut that off two days ago,
but there for a couple of weeks they got to
make money off of oil with the guarantee from the
lot buying Iranians that they would sit down and be
serious about nuclear talks. And it turns out, of course,
(22:06):
they weren't serious about it, and zero headway has been made,
and they didn't get into any of the details. But
enriched uranium or inspections or any of that sort of
stuff a surprise to no one, but apparently Trump and
Jdvans I just I don't I'm mystified. I don't believe
they don't know who they're dealing with. There's something else
going on here. I don't quite know what it is.
(22:29):
Maybe we won't know for years till the books are
written by the people behind the scenes. Trump was asked
some questions about.
Speaker 1 (22:37):
Ending the war, the war going on? Where we are now?
Speaker 5 (22:40):
Why are you apparently unable to end the Iran war?
Speaker 8 (22:45):
So I think we're doing just the opposite. The Iran
War has been a tremendous military success. And you know,
I can only answer the question by saying they're not going.
Speaker 6 (22:54):
To have a nuclear weapon.
Speaker 8 (22:55):
I could we uh denuclearize Iran, and that's happened. They
will never have a nuclear weapon.
Speaker 1 (23:03):
I sure hope that's true. And they go on, if I.
Speaker 8 (23:06):
Weren't president, Israel wouldn't exist. And we did it two
times when the g jc POA, the Obama deal, when
that was originally conceived, everything went to Urn one point
seven billion in cash, hundreds of billions of dollars. They
thought they could buy peace with these people.
Speaker 1 (23:24):
You can't do that.
Speaker 8 (23:26):
So the big thing we have is more important than
anything we can talk about, is you can't let lunatics
have nuclear weapons. And we've stopped that.
Speaker 1 (23:36):
I hope, like I said so.
Speaker 3 (23:38):
The Associated Press writes the confusion and uncertainty in Trump's
mixed messaging and his approval of back to back military
strikes leave major questions, i'd say, about what comes next
in the conflict. Just weeks after difficult diplomacy to reach
even an initial deal between the longtime adversaries, the whip
sawing rhetoric could be a strategy to increase the pressure
(24:00):
you're on Turan to stop attacking ships transporting oil and
natural gas in the Strait and bend to US demands.
Whether it's a negotiation tactic or a signal of an
escalation in fighting, Mediators are scrambling to save the deal,
and the actions risk further inflaming tensions, which could spell
problems for Republicans in November's midterm elections if gas prices
(24:20):
stay high. That's stuff about the way this affects the
midterms I always think is just dumb. Personally, the Democrats
are going to take the House Historically, that's what's supposed
to happen. Maybe they get more House seats because of
the war. I don't know, but it's definitely Republicans are
not gonna don't have any chance of hanging onto the
House if this war gets wrapped up.
Speaker 1 (24:41):
I don't think.
Speaker 3 (24:43):
And again, if our war policy around the world is
we can't go to war with anybody. If gas gets
kind of expensive for a summer, that's just no way
to run a war or a country. So that's disappointing too.
I have no idea where this is going. Neither does
anybody else. Time will tell I guess we'll see the
(25:06):
other war that we're involved in. We're not actually fighting
this war, but we are involved with Ukrainian Russia. Obviously,
this is new news. Ukrainian drones have hit more Russian
oil facilities and sent two oil tankers a blaze in
the Sea of Azov. This is a day after President
Trump pledged to grant Kiva license to manufacture the Patriot
(25:29):
Air Defense System to protect its cities. If you hadn't
heard the news, that's a big deal. We're gonna let
Kiev build the Patriot Air Defense System, which is the
best air defense system on Earth, which will help protect
the capital against anything any ballistic missiles that Putin wants
to send their way. And today drones hitting more of
(25:51):
the Russian oil facilities. You want to talk about a
gas crisis or an oil crisis, That's what they got
going on in Russia right now. And their population is
really unhappy with the long lines and the closed gas
stations and the price of gas and that sort of stuff,
which of course could turn people against the war in Ukraine.
I hope Ukraine's ability to reach out and disrupt their
(26:14):
oil refinery industry is really something and that's only going
to grow.
Speaker 1 (26:19):
What a war to watch?
Speaker 3 (26:20):
That is definitely seems like Ukraine is on the front
foot there, so both wars are an interesting spot. I
like the direction Ukraine Russia is going a lot better
than I like the direction US Iran is going. But oh,
by the way, one more thing, since we're talking about Iran.
Rama Manual he was Barack Obama's chief of staff. He
(26:44):
was the mayor of Chicago. He is a very smart
moderate Democrat who I'm shocked has not seriously run for
president before. He is going to run for president this time.
But does the Democratic Party want a Democrat at this point? Well,
he has always stood with Israel. He's a Jewish guy himself.
(27:05):
He's over in Israel giving some strong speeches against Benjamin
Netan Yahoo. I think he's trying to get his anti
net and Yah who he's trying to do. He's trying
to walk a fine line of supporting Israel, like mainstream
Democrats always have and mainstream Republicans always have, while being
critical of their current policies, to try to appease the
(27:28):
anti Semite. I will call them left in the Democratic Party.
I don't know if that's going to work or not.
I don't know if when it comes to a debate stage,
the fact that ram Emanuel supports Israel's right to exist
and takes money from Apak, I don't know if he
has a shot a getting the nomination, But time will
tell him that one too. Man, If you can't get
the nomination in the Democratic Party anymore by believing Israel
(27:51):
should exist as a country, we are in a whole
new era. Different topic coming up in a little bit.
Just read an interesting article about those gop ones. There's
weight loss drugs and all the different things they can do.
And what is that doing to some people's attitudes about
life or your your ability to even to try to
(28:14):
fight or resist bad things, or we all or we're
gonna start turning to pills rather than having any willpower whatsoever.
Interesting question on that. And then I also just came
across the term I saw up on the TV, should
you get an airport divorce?
Speaker 1 (28:30):
I don't know what an airport divorce is.
Speaker 3 (28:32):
Sounds like one of those cutesy terms and a phenomenon
just made up by mainstream media. But I will google
that and I'll figure out what it is. And we'll
talk about it and the gop ones when we come back.
Speaker 1 (28:50):
Meanwhile, and Huey Lewis News.
Speaker 4 (28:53):
I can't hear music. Music is not part of my
life anymore. I can't find pitch in the music. See
that technology that I use on my cochlear implant. It
breaks everything down into digital bits. Speech is easier to
listen to the music. The cochlear, which is my only
reliable form of hearing, distorts the music a little bit
(29:14):
in the same way it distorts people's voices. It makes
pitch impossible to hear. I can hear conversation. Fight pull
these things out. I'm deaf.
Speaker 1 (29:23):
I didn't know that.
Speaker 3 (29:24):
So that's Shuey Lewis, who listen to the news, one
of the biggest musical acts the entire eighties, and he
went deaf a while back. Did he go deaf because
of too much loud music?
Speaker 6 (29:36):
Do we know?
Speaker 3 (29:36):
Or is it just one of the random things that
can happen to anybody. A lot of your musicians are deaf.
It's because they were standing in front of crazy loud
speakers every night for years and years and years, like
Pete Townsend and the Who. But he's got one of
those cochlear implants like Rush Limbaugh got. I don't know
if I've ever known anybody that had one of those.
(29:58):
I didn't know that you couldn't hear me music with them.
Though you can hear speech fine, which obviously would be
a heck of a gift compared to being completely deaf.
But you can't hear music or pitch anyway.
Speaker 1 (30:07):
I'll be darned.
Speaker 3 (30:10):
Speaking to musicians. Huey Lewis is still alive. Bonnie Tyler
is not. She had a total eclipse of her heart
last night at age seventy five. Now now you don't
like that, Michael, No.
Speaker 1 (30:19):
Soon, too soon.
Speaker 3 (30:23):
I read the entire lyrics of that song earlier in
the show, many of which I didn't know. I've been
belting that song out in my car or radio studios
back when I was a DJ for decades, and some
of the lines I had completely wrong. She didn't write
the song to Jim steinem production. He wrote all your
schmaltzy songs of the eighties, seventies and eighties, all your
big ones. He was the one behind like your big
(30:46):
meat loaf songs. You know you're really schmaltzy. Meat Loves
two out of three Bad. You know those kind of songs,
Total Clips of the Heart. Once you recognize that this guy,
Jim Steinum, you can pick those songs out easily when
you hear him. Anyway, he was behind Total Clips of
the Heart, a giant hit for Bonnie Tyler, and one
(31:06):
of this is what I'm suggesting little for Little Friday tonight.
If you're out at the bar, at a karaoke bar,
get up there on stage quite drunk and sing Total
Eclips of the Heart in honor of Bonnie Tyler, dead
at the age of seventy five. I don't know if
I buy this article before I get to what an
airport divorce is? What's an airport divorce? I don't know
(31:27):
if I buy this article in the New York Times,
How golp ones feed our sick culture. This is what
this writer in the New York Times is trying to
convince us that these glp ones, these are any of
these drugs or zembic.
Speaker 1 (31:40):
Or Zegovni or whatever they're calling.
Speaker 3 (31:44):
Where people are losing weight and really really loving it,
and they're very, very popular, and and I know people
personally who it's changed their lives and they couldn't be happier.
How it's actually a bad thing because it's feeding our
sick culture of prioritizing thinness over fatness, and all it's
doing is driving home the point that being thin is better,
(32:08):
and you've got a choice out there, and if you're fat,
it's because you eat too much, you refuse take this medicine,
et cetera, et cetera.
Speaker 1 (32:14):
C I don't know if I buy this.
Speaker 3 (32:16):
Like I said, I know people are very very happy
that for the first time in a very long time
they're thinner and feeling better and looking better and have
more self confidence and all the different things that go
with that. I mean, technically, I get the argument it
does kind of feed that culture in that you wouldn't
(32:39):
lose weight. I guess if you're really overweight, you got
to lose weight for health reasons. But if you're just
kind of overweight, you're probably mostly losing weight because you
want to look better, for your ego, to get a mate,
for all the reasons we all want to look better,
all the reasons we diet and go to the gym
outside of health reasons. Here's some stunning statistics around that, though,
(33:03):
and again this is from the New York Times in
this particular article. Who uses this article uses the term
patriarchy twice, So I'm a little suspect on any article
to use their term patriarchar Yes, it's men in the
patriarchy that have caused society to think thin is better
than fat. That or just all humans everywhere on Earth
just automatically, biologically, genetically prefer thin to fat.
Speaker 1 (33:28):
We just do.
Speaker 3 (33:29):
It's not the patriarchy. It's not a flaw, I don't think.
But these stats are pretty amazing. Among women who are
single when they started on the golp ones, the probability
of being married or living with a partner goes up
eighteen percentage points overall, and twenty nine points over six
or more quarters, so that'd be a year and a
(33:51):
half or more. Your likelihood of having a romantic partner
or getting married goes up thirty points going on the
golp ones over a year and a half.
Speaker 1 (34:05):
That's something that's too bad.
Speaker 3 (34:08):
Your employment rate rises for people who are overweight going
on the golp ones by almost thirty points after a
year and a half. Make more money easier to get
a job if you're thinner than if you're overweight.
Speaker 1 (34:25):
I don't know.
Speaker 3 (34:25):
I've never been in a position to hire anybody where
I would have cared about your weight. Haven't been in
a position to hire anybody in a very long time.
I guess Joe and I do we have a role
and who's on our staff and everything like that. We've
never cared about weight. I don't know if I buy
those stats again. I don't know if I trust any
(34:46):
article that uses the term patriarchy.
Speaker 1 (34:48):
Ever. What's an airport divorce? See what you think of this?
Speaker 3 (34:55):
An airport divorce is a popular travel trend. Is it
not an actual that says there in parentheses? Where couples
temporarily split up at the airport after you go through
security to reduce stress and avoid arguments before a flight.
I don't know if you If it's to avoid arguments,
your relationship really isn't that good. If like just being
(35:17):
around each other for an hour before you fly, you're
gonna get into a fight.
Speaker 1 (35:21):
But this makes sense to me. Different people have different styles.
Speaker 3 (35:24):
Some people like to go through all the shops, walk
around and look at the crap in the shops. Some
people like me, like to find the quietest spot in
the airport and sit down and read. If you hate,
If you really don't want to sit down and read,
you'd rather walk around, well, then have.
Speaker 1 (35:38):
An airport divorce.
Speaker 3 (35:40):
Using my finger quotes and one of he walks around
the shops and gets a cup of coffee and looks
at those neck pillows and decides whether you should buy
another one, or if you need a T shirt that
says Cleveland because you're at the Cleveland Airport. Every airport
sells a T shirt with the name of the town
on it. I don't know how many they sell, but
(36:01):
as it says in here, it's not a sign that
your marriage is in trouble if you get an airport divorce.
I have a feeling that happily married people or normal
people in general, come to these conclusions on their own.
I'm gonna sit here and read. Okay, I'm gonna go
look around the shops.
Speaker 1 (36:17):
End of story.
Speaker 3 (36:18):
I don't know if it need a cute name like
airport divorce or not. If you miss a segment of
this show, get the podcast Armstrong and Getty on demand.
You should subscribe. Then you just automatically get each segment.
We got more to Go an hour four stick around
Armstrong and Getty
Hosts And Creators
Joe Getty
Jack Armstrong
Popular Podcasts
Betrayal Weekly
Betrayal Weekly is back for a new season. Every Thursday, Betrayal Weekly shares first-hand accounts of broken trust, shocking deceptions, and the trail of destruction they leave behind. Hosted by Andrea Gunning, this weekly ongoing series digs into real-life stories of betrayal and the aftermath. From stories of double lives to dark discoveries, these are cautionary tales and accounts of resilience against all odds. From the producers of the critically acclaimed Betrayal series, Betrayal Weekly drops new episodes every Thursday. If you would like to share your story, you can reach out to the Betrayal Team by emailing them at betrayalpod@gmail.com and follow us on Instagram at @betrayalpod and @glasspodcasts. Please join our Substack for additional exclusive content, curated book recommendations, and community discussions. Sign up FREE by clicking this link Beyond Betrayal Substack. Join our community dedicated to truth, resilience, and healing. Your voice matters! Be a part of our Betrayal journey on Substack.
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com