Crony Capitalism and the Return of McCarthyism

0:00Irreverent news, talk, opinion, satire. It's Newsweek Radio. I'm Jesse Edwards. And here's a blast from the past from former President Ronald Reagan to set the stage for today. This is a story of a commissar who visited one of their collective farms. And he stopped the first farmer, workman that he met, and he asked about life on the farm. And the man said, it's wonderful. I've never heard anyone complain about anything since I've been here. The commissar then said, well, what about the crops? Oh, he said the crops are wonderful. What about the potatoes? Oh, sir, he said, the potatoes. He said, there are so many that if we put them in one pile, they would touch the foot of God.

0:38And the commissaire said, just a minute, in the Soviet Union, there is no God. And the farmer said, well, there are no potatoes.

0:50Say what you will about Reagan. He had his problems just like the rest of them, but at least he had some charisma and a modicum of respectability. I would have no problem whatsoever being a Republican back then when it actually stood for something. Yeah, I think we're going to hear former President Reagan chiming in regularly during today's episode as he sees fit. Top trending story at Newsweek. A House Republican is introducing a new immigration bill that would make non-citizens who advocate for or are affiliated with socialist, communist, Marxist, or Islamic fundamentalist movements inadmissible, deportable, denaturalizable, and ineligible for naturalization.

1:28Say that 20 times fast. Good lord. And apparently this is only a free country if you think, act, and behave just like a Trump publican. And look, if you're so intimidated by socialism, Marxism, or Sharia law that you're going to try and snuff it out of existence entirely, that says a lot more about the lack of confidence that you have in your own perspective and opinions, for one. And two, it broadcasts to the entire world that you have no message of your own to compete against socialism or Marxism or Sharia. The only reason anyone on Earth would be attracted to these terrible systems is if your way of thinking has become so compromised that you've also sunken to the failed level of socialism, communism, or Marxism.

2:09We've been creeping closer to socialism, a system that someone once said works only in heaven where it isn't needed and in hell where they've already got it. There's nothing conservative about the Trump brand of conservatism. It has no other ideology than to lie, cheat, and steal and call it a deal. And they justify it saying that all the Democrats do it. That's the go-to line for the last remaining diehard Trump supporters. But Biden was corrupt. But the Democrats are corrupt. Yeah, well, that's probably true. But it does not give you the excuse to act just like they do. Two wrongs do not make a strong right wing.

2:43And that's what Trumpism in America represents to a lot of us never-Trump conservatives. The Democrats let it all hang out, so now the Republicans are just doing the same. That's why I'm a never-Trump conservative. Always have been, always will be. Conservatives are supposed to be better than this. And as hard as it is to back this statement that I'm about to give you, I believe that most conservatives are better than this, fundamentally. A lot of them are just confused because they were conned. And someday they will all realize that. Many of them are realizing it already. And it should be a beautiful thing.

3:14No matter when or where somebody finds the truth. And it's important to forgive these people for being misled, because we've all been misled by con artists at one point or another. Because being conned on this planet is just a part of life. It's interesting that we attach the word artist to con. isn't it? Because to do it masterfully is an absolute art. A very delicate art that requires precision and intelligence to execute. Which is something that Trump has been unable to execute at the highest levels that he could once at a very younger age. Look, the stress of the presidency ages any man twice as fast as the rest of us.

3:48Anybody who pays attention knows that. And Trump is half the man that he was a year ago and half of what he was a year before that. Just look at his speech patterns alone and his cognitive ability. We're watching the same thing that happened to Biden play out in real time again. Trump has always kind of been a know-it-all jerk, but what's changed in recent years is his ability to move on his feet. Teflon Don was always kind of like Mike Tyson in that sense, you know? Not too bright, but always able to move quickly and deliver a devastating knockout punch to his opponent. But lately, Trump's moves have been more like Mike Tyson's latest embarrassment fighting Jake Paul.

4:26It's all choreographed and fake and absolutely void of any meaningful content. Under the Mamdani Act that this Texas Republican is pushing, a non-citizen already in the United States could be removed if they engage in advocacy for socialism, communism, Marxism, or Islamic fundamentalism, distribute or publish material promoting those ideologies, or hold membership and affiliated organizations at any point after admission. And that's kind of the detail that matters. I mean, this is for non-citizens. And they do not have the same free speech protections that naturalized or regular U.S. citizens have.

5:01But my question is, why limit this to socialism, Marxism, communism, or Sharia law? Why not just tell all non-citizens that they're not allowed to engage in any form of political advocacy? Oh, that's right, because you don't have a problem when they're speaking out, as long as they are parroting your worldview. Got it. You're just a hypocrite. Who's proud to let their freak flag fly in that department? Because apparently you don't care what anyone thinks anymore, is that it? People from other countries from all over the world are allowed to come and speak their minds and participate in democracy.

5:31But only if they're Republicans who practice capitalism and attend non-denominational Christian church, Mr. Snurdly. And if they dare show any interest in socialism, Marxism, communism, or Sharia, they get sent back home. Now, conservatives don't defend capitalism anymore because they outsourced it to the highest bidder and replaced the shelf model with crapitalism, a rigged system that favors their big billionaire buddies while nickel and diming the middle class every time it tries to move ahead. Hey, with conservatives like this, who needs Marxists? Control consolidates at the top, private ownership shrinks, and everybody else pays for access.

6:09Castro was making a speech to a large assembly, and he was going on at great length and then a voice out in the crowd said, Peanuts, popcorn, crackerjack. And he went on speaking and again the voice said, Peanuts, popcorn, crackerjack. And about the fourth time this happened, he stopped in his regular speech and he said the next time he says that, he says, I'm going to find out who he is and kick him all the way to Miami. And everybody in the crowd said, peanuts, popcorn, black or jet. In socialism and communism, the state concentrates control in the name of fairness. And in crony capitalism, power concentrates through corporations that then shape the rules in terms of what they consider to be fair to them.

6:57All three produce barriers to injury that look a lot like the end result of our late stage capitalism. It locks out young people, protects the incumbents, and that chokes out mobility and competition. I'm not even sure how Sharia law fits into this equation. Completely different rule book rooted in religious fundamentalism. And honestly, economics are complicated enough without bringing God into it. Thank you very much. But this all ties directly into the polarization that has crippled the American political dialogue. Texas Republican Representative Chip Roy has dubbed his bill, the Mamdani Act, after New York City Mayor Zoran Mamdani, because he is an open democratic socialist and Muslim.

7:34Oh, the humanity. And Representative Chip Roy don't take kindly to that. Because he clearly feels that it threatens his way of life somehow down there in Texas that there's a socialist in charge of New York City. New York City! Since when did Texas boys care about anything that they do up there in fancy pants New York? Can Republicans please just get back to not being such soft little snowflakes and show the American people that they remember and know how to be serious again and how to govern in a way that's far more respectable and honest than the Democrats are even capable of? What's that? No?

8:13So we're just going to keep doing the same thing and collectively expecting different results? All right, I get the game here. Remember that, you Democrats, when Trump gets another SCOTUS appointment or two before his clock runs out? And remember that, you Republicans, when the left gets back into power and they are emboldened by what their predecessor was able to get away with? Because now I'm afraid we're going to see a new wave of teenage mutant ninja liberals coming out of the sewers in ways that none of us have seen yet. Not looking forward to those culture wars. Buckle up, buttercup. It's going to be a bumpy ride.

8:49This is the same tired and failed playbook as McCarthyism, trying to bury ideas instead of beating them. And that has never worked anywhere in human history.