Michelle Obama Upstages Barack, Euros Love America, and 2028 Rumblings, with Rich Lowry and Charles C.W. Cooke | Ep. 1341

17 Jun 2026 · 1 h 41 min · 35 chapters

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In short

The episode focuses on fallout from a new Iran “memorandum of understanding” (dubbed by critics the “Vance peace deal”), arguing it’s a disappointing, likely temporary arrangement that trades reopening the Strait of Hormuz for limited/unfinished commitments on Iran’s nuclear and other issues. The hosts also discuss Republican factional splits heading toward 2028 and a cultural-politics segment about the Obama Presidential Library’s new Michelle Obama portrait.

Guests (backgrounds)

  • Rich Lowry, editor of National Review.
  • Charles C.W. Cooke, National Review senior editor.

Key claims

  • The deal’s terms are being downplayed as “not final,” while Trump threatens renewed force, which Lowry says violates the deal’s “no threat of force” premise.
  • Lowry and Cooke argue the war’s core achievement was destroying Iran’s nuclear infrastructure, but the broader strategy failed because the Strait of Hormuz became the leverage point.
  • They say Trump misjudged both public tolerance for escalation and the feasibility of a “best-ever” peace.
  • They argue right-wing infighting is shifting toward 2028 nomination battles (neocon vs non-interventionist instincts), with possible “third lane” populist/isolationist candidates.

Notable examples

  • Discussion of Fox & Friends clips criticizing the MOU’s “best efforts” language for safe passage and concerns about tolling after 60 days.
  • Critique of the Obama Library portrait by artist Yideka Akunyili Crosby, described as placing Michelle “on the same level” as Barack while critics say Barack is visually relegated to the background.

Written by AI. May contain mistakes. Listen to the episode to check what was said.

Chapters

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The Iran Deal Dynamics

1:30 to 2:54

Discussion on the unfolding politics surrounding the Iran deal.

“Vance told us a bit about what's in the agreement yesterday.”

Reactions to the Vance Peace Deal

2:54 to 5:54

Analysis of reactions to the Vance peace deal and its implications.

“And I couldn't find my little audio button because I love that NR will read the articles to you.”

Assessing the Terms of the Iran Agreement

5:54 to 8:56

In-depth analysis of the terms and implications of the Iran agreement.

“But what's happening around it, Rich, is even more interesting to me because clearly the more hawkish right hates this deal, hates it and would like it to be undone.”

Strategic Outcomes and Misconceptions

8:56 to 11:48

Discussion on misconceptions and potential outcomes of the Iran deal.

“We'll give you some economic incentives to do that and to not toll people at least for 60 days and maybe some additional economic incentives for you to continue not doing that, not doing the tolling.”

Reflections on Military Engagement

11:48 to 14:00

Reflections on military decisions and their consequences in the Iranian conflict.

“We could have had the bombing of the nuclear facilities and an Obama style JCPOA Trump version without launching this war.”

The Existential Fight in War

14:00 to 14:52

Discusses the implications of the ongoing conflict and strategic missteps.

“And it signaled from the outset, this is an existential fight, right?”

The Costs of War and Peace Negotiations

14:52 to 19:22

Examines the loss of troops and the challenges of peace negotiations post-conflict.

“I mean, the number one reason that we, I think, are lamenting the fact that this was launched to begin with is the loss of our troops, our 13 military personnel.”

Evaluating the Memorandum of Understanding

19:22 to 22:44

Analyzes the implications of the MOU and its potential flaws.

“Trump would never say, I'm sorry, right, that I was focused on something else.”

Trump's Foreign Policy and Republican Divisions

22:44 to 28:00

Explores Trump's foreign policy stance and the internal divisions within the Republican Party.

“It's an attempt to like protect the president from the political fallout here.”

Divides Within the Republican Party

28:00 to 29:05

Discussion on the internal divisions among Republicans as election 2028 approaches.

“You can't silence dissenting voices or just overcome objections to the president reversing himself on a campaign promise that was explicit and made repeatedly by saying, trust the president.”
Show all 35 chapters

The Rise of Alternative Candidates

29:05 to 31:15

Analyzing the possibility of new candidates like Tulsi Gabbard emerging in the 2028 race.

“And at the moment, the right is incredibly divided.”

Economic Populism and Voter Sentiment

31:15 to 34:02

Exploring the sentiments of voters who are frustrated with current economic conditions.

“Yeah, even like a Tucker Carlson, somebody who represents the more isolationist wing, who's going to say a pox on both their houses.”

Challenges of a Third Party

34:02 to 36:35

Discussion on the difficulties third parties face in the current U.S. political landscape.

“Well, I think that the risk is much greater in the general election.”

Trump's Impact on Republican Dynamics

36:35 to 37:26

Examining how Trump's style has influenced the current Republican Party dynamics.

“which is shared by about 3 % of the public, right?”

Public Sentiment Against Political Establishment

37:26 to 41:35

Analyzing how public sentiment can align against established political figures.

“It was someone who came along, looked at all of those people on the stage, the other 16 people, and said, yeah, yeah, all of your categories are bunk.”

Discussion of the Obama Portrait

42:00 to 47:22

Analyzing the portrayal of Michelle and Barack Obama in a new portrait and public perceptions.

“It's going to cost you a mere$30 to get in.”

Michelle Obama's Narrative

47:28 to 52:44

Exploring Michelle Obama's self-perception and her critiques of Barack in public.

“leaving the inauguration of Trump because it was just so hard what we expected of them because they were black.”

Michelle Obama's Narrative

53:03 to 54:11

Exploring Michelle Obama's self-perception and her critiques of Barack in public.

“We're going to come back with Rich and Charlie.”

Critique of Obama Statues

55:19 to 56:00

Discussing the unflattering statues of the Obamas and their artistic representation.

“Back with me on this NR Day National Review are Rich Lowry and Charlie Cook.”

Artistic Representations and Reactions

56:00 to 57:20

Discussion about art depictions of Michelle Obama and public reactions.

“And I don't know who she looks like, but I can tell you this.”

Sheryl Crow's Critical Response

57:20 to 58:40

Analyzing Sheryl Crow's comments on the UFC event at the White House.

“the meltdown over the UFC event on the White House lawn continues on the left.”

Cultural Commentary on UFC and American Values

58:40 to 1:01:20

Discussion of cultural implications of the UFC event attended by Trump.

“it only cares about making money hand over fist as the at the expense and in spite of our democracy if we continue to support this kind of distraction from reality we are no better than them let's be better America.”

Critique of Media Reactions

1:01:20 to 1:04:00

Criticism of media figures for escalating trivial matters to major historical comparisons.

“Look, we talked about this the other day in our podcast.”

Celebrity Politics and Perception

1:04:00 to 1:06:40

Debate on how celebrity involvement shapes political narratives and perceptions.

“Jim Acosta, did you see the video of him outside the Kennedy Center when they were supposed to be taking Trump's name off it?”

Terror Plot Against UFC Event

1:06:40 to 1:10:00

Discussion on a thwarted terror plot targeting the UFC event at the White House.

“I was at the 2008 coronation of Barack Obama at Invesco Field out in Denver when he accepted the nomination with the Greek columns, remember?”

Analyzing Domestic Terrorism Threats

1:10:00 to 1:12:25

Discussing the alarming details of a thwarted drone attack plot against a Trump event.

“It forced, it was going to force spectators and quote, high value targets to evacuate again, where they would then be shot.”

The Role of Drones in Security

1:12:25 to 1:16:19

Exploring the implications of drone technology for security and public safety.

“And I know you're no fan of it either, Charlie, but there is a role for federal law enforcement.”

European Perspectives on America

1:16:19 to 1:19:41

Examining how European tourists are experiencing America positively during their visit.

“because they're experiencing our country for the first time.”

Rediscovering American Pride

1:19:41 to 1:23:50

Reflecting on the perception of America and its values through the eyes of visitors.

“So I love this because this is how I feel, of course, as well.”

Celebrating American Culture Through European Eyes

1:24:00 to 1:25:00

Discussion on American cultural appreciation and unique offerings.

“And the Democrats' numbers are just in the toilet.”

Controversy Over San Francisco Giants' Pride Night

1:28:53 to 1:35:59

Debate over players' reactions to Pride Night changes and freedom of expression.

“Rich and Charlie from National Review are back with me now.”

Emily Ratajkowski's Bold Magazine Piece

1:35:59 to 1:38:01

Analysis of Emily Ratajkowski's controversial article on motherhood and dating.

“And now there's a lot of coercion and you get representatives saying that this is a disgrace and you get people calling for Major League Baseball to kick these people out.”

Critique of Vulnerable Narratives

1:38:01 to 1:40:34

Exploration of a controversial personal narrative regarding motherhood and promiscuity.

“And she writes about this process in the most vile and crude terms.”

Media Analysis and Reflection

1:40:35 to 1:41:45

Discussion on the role of media in shaping public perception and behavior.

“It's like young girls who don't have Emily's followers on Instagram or her money or her name.”

Messages in Modern Feminism

1:41:46 to 1:43:53

Examining conflicting messages in feminism and societal expectations for women.

“How does Calista Gingrich's hair do that?”
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Transcript

Automatic transcript. May contain errors.

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1:12Hey everyone, I'm Megyn Kelly. Welcome to The Megyn Kelly Show. A lot of news to get to you today, including leftists hating America, while Europeans who are coming over for the World Cup are discovering how amazing our country is. What's wrong with that picture? But we begin today with the politics unfolding around the Iran deal. Vice President J.D. Vance told us a bit about what's in the agreement yesterday. And it's not sitting well with the president's newfound buddies. The never Trump crowd that's more hawkish that now has been embracing him is having second thoughts. The admin is under pressure from the more hawkish neocon right about what some are now dubbing the Vance peace deal.

1:54This is the Vance peace deal. President Trump today obviously feeling the pressure at the G7 in France because he was downplaying the agreement, saying it's not final and that bombs could even be dropping again soon. Watch. Is the tax day agreement now final or are you still? No, it's not final. It's a memorandum of understanding. And if I don't like it, we'll go back to shooting at them, dropping bombs on their head. If I don't like it, if they don't behave, we'll go right back to dropping bombs right smack in the middle of their head. OK, because they misbehaved for 47 years. All right. Joining me now to react is a couple of great are a couple of guys we love from National Review because it's an NR day here at the MK Show.

2:45National Review editor, Rich Lowry, National Review senior editor, Charles C.W. Cook. Go become an NR Plus subscriber now. The other day I was on NR and I love NR. I get so much of my news there. And I couldn't find my little audio button because I love that NR will read the articles to you. They have a good AI over there. And then I realized it was because I hadn't signed in. I am an NR Plus member. If you sign in, suddenly, magically, all the articles become available to you to be read by this lovely audio AI voice. Thanks to Rich Lowry. So go ahead, become a member, support their journalism, and get the audio read to you.

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4:44All your policies in one place. Go to supersure.com slash Megan and check it out. Wouldn't it be nice to have a little handholding as you go through this crazy process? Paid for by SuperSure Insurance Agency, LLC, a licensed insurance agency. Thank you for that, Rich Lowry. Nice to see you. Nice to see you too, Charlie. Going well. There's a lot going on. So I think it's very interesting. The dynamics of the Iran deal are very interesting, aren't they? Like we talked at length about this thing yesterday. I opened the show with the reported deal terms, which have turned out to be the deal terms.

5:25The administration is now saying those aren't necessarily the deal terms. Okay. I mean, like, If they're not the deal terms, literally everybody who's connected to the agreement who's put them out is wrong. That could be the case. But I'm going to go with these are the deal terms minus a couple of tweaks that we might get from the admin. And J.D. Vance didn't seem to have any problem with, you know, my recitation of what they were either. OK, so let's assume those are the deal terms. If you want to hear them, you can go back and listen to yesterday's show open. But what's happening around it, Rich, is even more interesting to me because clearly the more hawkish right hates this deal, hates it and would like it to be undone.

6:07And, you know, the more isolationist wing of the party is like, fine, whatever. Let's let's get out. This hasn't worked out well. Let's just put a period at the end of it and stop the bleeding, cut our losses, in other words. And you could hear in that soundbite that President Trump is feeling the pressure, right? Like, he wouldn't have said that, Rich, if he weren't getting a lot of phone calls from that first group I just referenced. So what do you make of it? Yeah, but it's also, it's not the kind of thing that's surprising to hear from him. And is, by the way, technically a violation of the first provision in this deal, which is that you can't threaten force.

6:43And, of course, he's threatening force. So look, I'm not as – I think it's a disappointing deal, but I'm not as shocked and outraged by it as some of my hawkish friends just because I thought this is where we were headed for a very long time. I got bored talking about this on our own podcast because we were constantly talking about – at least I was, Charlie was, MBD was. This is going to be a disappointing outcome because we didn't win the war. Winning the war would have required at least freeing up the Strait of Hormuz by force of arms, which would have been very complicated, risky and protected operation that it became pretty clear early on that Trump just wasn't going to undertake.

7:17So then you're dealing not over the nuclear program fundamentally. You're dealing over reopening the Strait. And my reading of this is it's basically a skinny deal. It's a trade of a reopening of the Strait, maybe with some form of tolling. The MOE – the memorandum of understanding doesn't say anything about tolling one way or the other in exchange for lifting the blockade and for letting – for us letting them sell oil. Now, the other provisions, you read them at first blush. They're pretty horrifying, but then you read them with the lawyer's eye, and nothing has been agreed to. It's all pending progress.

7:53It's all – we're undertaking to come up with a plan. It's all pending the final agreement. And I'm not sure any of that is going to happen. Now, there might be pressure for it to happen because Trump's now said this deal is so great. You know, maybe he's vested in it. Iran still has leverage over the straight. But my guess is you get a reopening, both the blockade and the straight. And I'm not sure anything else is going to happen. Certainly, this is not going to be resolved in 60 days. There's going to be an extension. That is the best analysis I have heard of what actually happened here. Honestly, thank you for that clarity.

8:28I think that's exactly right. We decided to leave is what happened. Thank God, because it wasn't going well, and it wasn't going anywhere. It could only get worse, you know, like the escalation trap. And before you know it, we've got boots on the ground or, you know, there was a report that Trump had mentioned the nuclear possibility. No, no, no, right? So we decided to get out, and we needed to open the strait for world energy purposes. So we cut a deal that would allow that to happen. We'll pull out the blockade. You open the strait. We'll give you some economic incentives to do that and to not toll people at least for 60 days and maybe some additional economic incentives for you to continue not doing that, not doing the tolling.

9:09And they said, OK, that sounds good for now. And then we tabled all the really ugly stuff like, can you pursue nuclear? What's going to happen to nuclear dust? What kind of inspections? If you can enrich to what extent all that stuff that they spent, I think, 18 months negotiating, Charlie, under the Obama JCPOA that Trump said he hated and he tore up. He doesn't even want to kind of go there. And I get why people who are very worried about Iran don't like it. But we lost our leverage. And so, like, we kind of don't have the muscle to force them to agree to anything right now. Instead, Trump came in with a bunch of carrots saying, on phase two, if you're good boys and girls over there, we might make it worth your while financially.

9:56I agree with pretty much all of that. And this isn't being pedantic. The one thing I would disagree with is you said we don't have the muscle. We do have the muscle, but we don't have the will to use that muscle. Donald Trump is on this issue a lot more hawkish than the American public is. Now, I think that's probably a fact of where Americans are, but also he made absolutely no effort to alter that. He didn't make a case to the public. He didn't try and sway them initially. And so he ended up in a much more hawkish position than the electorate. And that left him stranded where he'd gone in. He had made some grand pronouncements about what we were going to achieve, most of which I thought were worthwhile in a vacuum, getting rid of the terrible Iranian government, taking up their nuclear program and so forth.

10:46But then when they used their agency to fight back, mostly by closing the Strait of Hormuz, Trump had a choice. He either escalated it, which would probably have included boots on the ground and some more American losses, or he got out. And I think that's what's happened. They've decided to get out because they're just not willing to pay that price. Now, the one caveat I have, which I keep repeating, is that in one sense is a failure of what they were trying to do. But I don't think it necessarily follows that we are in a worse place now than we were prior to this, or at least prior to our bombing of the Iranian nuclear facilities before this foray.

11:27Yeah, that's a different story. It's a different story. But I think that to end up with, which is where we seem to be headed, an Obama style Iran deal, plus having taken out their nuclear facilities is better than just an Obama style Iran deal. But that doesn't change the fact that what Trump was talking about in the early days of this has not come to fruition. And he misjudged his own or the American public's willingness to take this to its conclusion. Yep, I agree. We could have had the bombing of the nuclear facilities and an Obama style JCPOA Trump version without launching this war. We were negotiating it when we bombed them.

12:06You know, that was the frustration of many of us. Like, what are we doing? The June strike was good. We took out the three facilities. We like that. The nuclear dust is buried. We like that, too. Why are we going back over there? Like, we're going to sink their Navy. Were we ever really worried about the Iran Navy? I don't think we were. I mean, Rich, I'm pretty sure that wasn't like something that kept the Pentagon up at night. That was one of the weakest talking points through this whole thing is a total strategic irrelevance. And we fell into the trap. We've fallen into it before during Vietnam.

12:32I'm not comparing this to Vietnam, but there's a trap of just counting up how much stuff you've hit and therefore saying you're winning. and you're achieving your strategic objectives when those things are not necessarily related, as we found out here. So I think there are at least three key misconceptions here. One, you take out the Ayatollah and the regime falls and ended up not being true. Two, that you just do a four to six week campaign and then just close up shop when you're ready to and say goodbye, we're done, which we couldn't do once they'd taken the straight. And then three, in some ways, the original sin of this was not making any public case for it, not going to Congress for a vote, because when you're engaged in kind of a limited war like this, one of the key constraints is how much political support you have.

13:17And when you don't have any political support or limited political support going in, it's going to limit your options. So again, reopening the strait would have been kind of the crux of the war as it developed, but we couldn't do it because it would have probably required troops on the ground. You might have lost a ship or two, God forbid, helicopters, maybe you lose a POW or two. And just there's no way Trump was going to do that on behalf of what was at the outset, an unpopular war that was steadily becoming more unpopular. Now, look, I agree with Charlie. I think the core achievement here is destroying their nuclear infrastructure, such as if they just wanted to start again right now, they couldn't.

13:55Now, you could have done that with a more robust 12-day war, something short of what we did here. And just final point, I think killing the Ayatollah, even though I was glad when it happened, and I understand the temptation to take that shot, I think it was a key mistake because we got nothing from it strategically. The regime didn't collapse. The regime didn't moderate. And it signaled from the outset, this is an existential fight, right? Do everything you can. Go close the strait. Whereas if it had been a more limited campaign at the outset where you said, we're not targeting the leadership.

14:25We've seen this before. We did a version of it last year. But if you go after the strait, then we target your leadership. Then we know where all the bunkers are and you guys are going to die in the middle of the night. Then maybe they don't close the strait. But once they close the strait and we hadn't properly prepared for it, a mistake that really goes to the top and Trump's over-optimism about everything. He was over-optimistic about the war. Now he's over-optimistic about the peace deal. Once that happened, we're headed to inevitably, I think, to a disappointing outcome. Well, that's another reason.

14:53I mean, the number one reason that we, I think, are lamenting the fact that this was launched to begin with is the loss of our troops, our 13 military personnel. But the other thing is the strait was open before we launched this war. You know, so after that June bombing 12 months ago of their nuclear facilities, we had what we needed. There was really no reason to go back in there. And we could have just said we could have continued the negotiation that Witkoff and Kushner were doing. come up with some, again, like JCPOA, Trump version, where they agree and we have monitoring, which we haven't been having since Trump tore up the JCPOA that Obama negotiated.

15:30We haven't been having monitoring, which is one of the reasons why we had to bomb them. But we could have renewed monitoring. We could have had like some sort of, we could have done all these deals, like with the carrots and stuff. We could have done that without all the carnage. And we wouldn't have had to worry about the strait now being open but controlled by Iran. You know, like prior to this war, that wasn't a thing. And now we're going to have to deal with this forevermore. And unfortunately, it's almost like set an example for the world around that the waterways are a leverage point in war, in international relations.

16:05You know, Charlie, that wasn't a thing prior to now. And now it is a thing. So I don't know. If you were talking to Trump a week ago, would you have said, do this? Like, let's just wrap it up. Or would you have said, we have to wrap it up in a prettier way to appease more people because you're going to lose support if you can't clearly emerge as, quote, the victor? Well, I don't think it would have mattered what I said to Donald Trump because quite literally every single thing that he does, he casts as the greatest thing that has happened since the creation of the earth. so this is very much in his wheelhouse this will have been a smashing victory the war will have been a smashing victory the peace will have been a smashing victory and if you look back a few years ago he basically re-ratified NAFTA but called it the Donald Trump free trade deal and wrote how beautiful it was and how awful the status quo ante was so we'll get that here.

17:05Again, not to be pedantic, but the issue here, Megan, is that we're just not prepared to pay the price. You were saying, well, we didn't have this problem with the waterways before. The US Navy plays largely the role in the world that the British Navy did prior to 1945. That's keeping these waterways open. The British Empire was quite willing to send gunboats and just shell anyone who got in the way of international trade. The US Navy has been as well. But this one is a little bit different because this is not just the quotidian maintenance of the seas. This is quite obviously the product of the war.

17:41And that I think is the fatal problem that Trump encountered and where Iran recognized the pressure point that you described. Because there's only really two things that Americans would care about. They're right to care about both of these things. One is losing American soldiers, two is gas prices. If Trump had gone into Iran, and we hadn't lost any American soldiers, and gas prices had stayed precisely the same, if there had been no economic fallout whatsoever from this, I don't think the average person would have cared. Maybe they should, maybe they shouldn't. But I don't think they would have.

18:14I don't think the abstract criticisms of this sort of adventurism resonate with most people. They just get on with their lives. But he just couldn't pay those two prices. And I just I don't think that the triumphalism of which he is so fond was going to get him out of that. He's learning here that there is only so much reality distortion that he is capable of and has come late in his presidency. But he's not managed to sell the war. He didn't really try. And he's not managed to sell the peace either. And he's going to have to take his lumps on this one. And I say that as somebody who really wanted this to work out, but he's just going to have to take his lumps.

18:54And I think if I were giving him advice, back to your question, that's what I would say to him. And then I'd say, move on. And please, for God's sake, if we're leaving Iran, if this is done now, please talk about the economy. Yes, yes, yes, yes. We've got, you know, how many months now? What, June? It happens in November. So five months, four and a half, for him to focus like a laser on the economy. The gas prices, the oil prices are coming down. The gas prices have come down a little, and he's just got to keep that rolling like strongly through the summer and telegraph to the American people like, I'm on it.

19:26Trump would never say, I'm sorry, right, that I was focused on something else. He will triple down and quadruple on, they were going to get a nuclear weapon and I'm the one who stopped it. Okay, whatever. But he's just got to make people actually feel he's focused on their issues. But before we leave the politics of this, Rich, I love Brian Kilmeade. I think he's a great guy. He's actually a dear friend. But I did think it was interesting. He's more a hawkish guy. And here's how he was speaking about the deal on Fox and Friends this morning. Take a listen. Israel has to, I guess, stop fighting back against Hezbollah, who's lobbing missiles at the northern part of their country.

20:03This makes absolutely no sense. It makes no sense. Is everything that you said, I think the president would say, I'm just wondering if the people that negotiated this have informed the president about what's in the page and a half he's going to read publicly on Friday. And I would just say we were in a much better place before we saw the details of this MOU. And unless President Trump can change this at the last minute and get good deals here, I would say that this memorandum of understanding is is worse than not having it. Right. Next 24 hours, he could go in and do that. I hope he does. Sorry, that wasn't actually the soundbite that I was referring to.

20:40But there was one earlier on the curvy couch where Brian said it was the Vance peace deal. Take a listen. The MOU calls for the Strait of Hormuz to be reopened in the near term. All right. The MOU stipulates, quote, that Iran will make arrangements using its best efforts for the safe passage of commercial vessels with no charge for 60 days. Hold on here. Best efforts? What do you mean best efforts? Just back out of there. We'll pick up the mines, not best efforts. That's a specific vague language. And what happens after 60 days? Word is they're going to get together with Oman and Iran's going to get together with Oman and charge tolls.

21:21If that's the case, that's unacceptable for everybody. Well, the good news is gas prices have gone down. So that's great. If the strait is open, that helps. That helps with gas prices globally. Here's the thing, though, Brian. You're reading a list of what you think the deal looks like. Possibly there's another list here in front of me. There's another list here in front of you. What does the real deal say? What I just said, hopefully I just said it was read to me from the from the memory of understanding from someone who was holding it in his hand. OK. All right. Well, that seems very vague, very vague and concerning.

21:57All I'm going to say is the vice president was here, did a wonderful job on every outlet, including the view. But this is his deal. It's not the president's deal. And it's his deal and Steve Whitcoff and Jared Kushner together. I just hope they didn't let the president down because the president's putting a lot of stock in them. Right. And he has to. He can't do everything himself. I just hope they didn't let him down. We're starting to see like like Mark Thiessen to my old pal from the Kelly file. He called it the Vance peace deal yesterday. There are deal Vance deal. I'm not calling it peace.

22:28and there does seem to be an attempt here, Rich, to carve out some space for J.D. Vance to get all the blame for this terrible deal. And even Vance to me yesterday was like, oh, gee, isn't that interesting how they're, that's what they're calling it. And I wonder why. And I think we all know why, right? It's an attempt to like protect the president from the political fallout here. Yeah. So I'm friends with both Brian and Mark. So I want to address what they said. I'll say what I think about this. I don't get it at all. It's not the Vance peace deal. It's only happening because Trump is so desperate for the peace deals.

23:00But we've seen this, I think, from both sides within the right and both factions. He launches the war. People say, oh, he's manipulated by B.B. Netanyahu into it. He's ending the war and they're saying, oh, he's being manipulated by J.D. Vance into it. No, it's all Trump. You know, he wouldn't have launched the war if he didn't want to do it and he was over optimistic about it. He wouldn't do this peace deal if he weren't desperate to do it and he's over optimistic about it. Now, I think that the potential downside to J.D., I mean, fundamentally, he needs to be a loyal soldier. And I think as far as anyone can tell from the outside, he's tiptoed through the raindrops.

23:32He apparently made it clear at the last meeting about this. He wouldn't do it if he were president, but he'd support Trump. He's been a loyal soldier. And the thing he has to do for 2028 for his nomination purposes, stay on the right side Trump. So all indications he's done that. But I do think he's created some hostages to fortune by being so optimistic about this. The thing he said the other day, oh, it's really cool to see this regime. Now they realize there's 47 years of hostility towards the United States was a mistake. I'll believe that when I see it. I'm very skeptical. But he's got to reflect what the guy at the top does.

24:08So Trump would never just say, well, look, this is the best we could do. It's not perfect. I wish it were different. Maybe it won't even work out, but this is the best we can do. Half a loaf. It's got to be the best thing ever, and they've got to be rational people now. And also, by the way, the regime change stuff, we talked about this in the past, right? He still insists the regime has changed. At the same time, he's now saying he also never cared about regime change. So which is it? He's just this sui generis figure that is totally unique. He's not an isolationist. He's not a neocon. He's a little both and neither at the same time.

24:42just Trump. And when he says I'm MAGA, you know, and I define MAGA foreign policy, there's just a huge element of truth to that. It's very interesting to me because all these figures that, you know, were very pro-Trump when he launched this, who hadn't backed him in 16, 20, or even 24, he wasn't their first choice at all. But suddenly they loved him because he was going to bomb Iran. I went back and looked. I trust the president. I trust our president. Trust the president. And now this week, where's the memorandum of understanding? We need to see it. This deal looks terrible. It's a disaster. It's true.

Read the full transcript

25:18Like, this is a nightmare. We would have been better off never going into the first. What happened to I trust the president? What happened? And honestly, Charlie, it kind of puts the lie to the whole nonsense of like around this whole controversy, which is you're either with the president or you're against him. It's bullshit. Like only true deep partisan hacks are just knee jerk with the president or any politician in our business where you're a journalist and you're a commentator on the news. I think you'll probably be with him sometimes and you'll be against him other times. You'll have varying opinions depending on what he does.

25:58But I would submit to you that the people who are backing Trump who really wanted this war did not look at people like yours truly and say, it's OK to not back this. You're entitled to your opinion. I feel like they're entitled to their opinion. You guys came on the first day this launched. And I said, my husband agrees with you. So I have no judgment for people who feel differently than I do. But it's been very eye opening to watch the right eat itself because you weren't allowed to not support this war. But I guess now you are allowed to not support the peace agreement, notwithstanding your I trust the president mantra.

26:36While you're singing my song, I've been writing this for 11 years because people are so irritating when it comes to Trump. And I've said over and over again that the one phrase that I've never understood is, are you on the Trump train? What's that mean? What do I mean? Like permanently? I don't really like him, but he's right a lot, does good things. So I say that and then sometimes he's wrong and then I say he's really bad on this. And that's how you're supposed to be as a free citizen. If you do anything else, you're just offloading your conscience and your mind to someone else, which is a really bizarre and really evil thing to do.

27:11So the phrase, you know, well, I'll just trust the president. That really should not leave the lips of anyone, especially an American, given our mistrust of government. It's odd, though, that Trump has been trying that line out. He's never quite expressed what it's for. But in recent weeks, he's been putting it out on social media where he says, be quiet. You know, trust me. It'll work out. It always does. That's an almost verbatim recitation of these strange tweets. No, that's not how it works. You could say that at election time you have to make a decision. It's yes or no. And you can say that you should respect the office of the president.

27:58But the president should not be telling people to stay quiet and trust him because it will always work out either. That's the thing. You can't silence dissenting voices or just overcome objections to the president reversing himself on a campaign promise that was explicit and made repeatedly by saying, trust the president. Just trust him. And if you don't, you're some sort of hater. It's like, no, no, no, no, no, no. I heard all the promises that we weren't going to do this. I understand he always said Iran can't have a nuclear weapon. But there are some of us who don't believe that's what we're going into Iran for because we know he bombed their three nuclear facilities the previous June.

28:40We backed him on that. We supported that. There are many people who said that was a good idea, but this war wasn't. And you can't just overcome legitimate objections by being like, I trust the president and you don't. Therefore, you're a hater. It's just it's been a very annoying thing. But here's what interests interests me, Rich, about the divide now between Republicans. right i mean we're always going to be fighting the left for all the reasons the three of us have been discussing for six years but what's going to happen because as i said to jd vance yesterday as soon as those midterms are over 2028 is on and the candidates are going to start claiming their lanes going on book tours some are at it even sooner um you know going to state fairs and what have you just to make sure they're out there and they're getting their name and so on.

29:29And at the moment, the right is incredibly divided. And I think, you know, my short form judgment is the neocons would prefer a Marco Rubio and the non-interventionalists would prefer a J.D. Vance. And that fight will play out. But I do wonder whether the right can come together to support any candidate, like whether the neocons could ever vote for a J.D. Vance, whether the non-interventionists could ever vote for a Marco Rubio or a greater hawk, you know, someone like a Tom Cotton or a Ted Cruz. I just don't know. Maybe I'm being naive. Maybe they've come together over fights bigger than this in the past.

30:12Nothing's coming to mind. I don't remember one where the right was this divided as we head into election season. There have been lots of divides over time. And just in a general election, when you have two choices, the partisan gravity to get on board with your candidate, because let's say it's Marco and non-interventionists aren't particularly happy. Are they really going to prefer AOC or Gavin Newsom or Kamala Harris? Same thing with J.D. He has the highest chances, obviously, of winning the nomination. But are you going to be happier with an AOC? Let me just throw let me just throw one other curveball for your analysis before you go any further.

30:49I agree with you. The vast majority of Republicans would prefer a righty to a lefty. But there's also a contingency that would stay home, just like I'm not motivated at all and I can't cast a vote for this person. But but putting that to the side, I predict there's going to be a third kind of candidate. And I think the person will probably run as a Republican. And I think it's going to be a Tulsi Gabbard. Oh, as an independent general election candidate. Yeah, even like a Tucker Carlson, somebody who represents the more isolationist wing, who's going to say a pox on both their houses. These were campaign promises that were near and dear to millions of people's hearts.

31:28And that person could they're not going to get any neocon support, but that person could get Democrat support if they were to get the nomination. But I predict this will be a new and important strain in the 2828 election versus what we've seen in years past. So, yeah, it wouldn't shock me if there's an America only MTG style candidate in the Republican primer. It's unlikely to see who could win the nomination coming out of that wing. But J.D. wants to, you know, he's more over on that side than he is with the neocons, obviously. But as he said with you, you know, I don't disagree. I disagree with John Podorets' criticism of this deal.

32:12But of course, he has a place in the Republican Party. So someone who wants to be president of the United States needs to sound like that. Can't be a factional leader. But again, I just think that the threat from the Democrats is going to be so grave next time around. If they get unified control of Washington, there's going to be a serious attempt to eliminate the filibuster, impact the Supreme Court, and add states. I mean it's a near existential question for our system. So – and I also think most ordinary voters – we care a lot about these foreign policy questions. We debate them a lot. I'm not sure how central they are for average Republicans.

32:51I just don't think they're doctrinal enough on that to say, oh, it's Marco. He's more neocon than J.D. I'm with Tulsi in an independent bid. I just don't see that happening. The only reason to disagree with that, and I'm not sure I do, is the polling on Iran, which is it's incredibly unpopular. It's unpopular with Republicans. It's unpopular, hugely unpopular with Democrats. But the independents are all against it, too. So there's I don't know, there's definitely a large strain of people who voted for Trump in 2024 from the independent lean in particular and some of those low propensity voters who got out for him that are mad.

33:33They're mad over this. They're mad over Epstein. They're mostly mad over the economy, Charlie. And they might be open-minded to somebody who's even more of an economic populist than Trump and also is promising not to get us into any foreign entanglements and could really sell the, I can't be bought by any interest group, you know, Thomas Massey style. I don't know. I'm not sure whether that person can win on a national level, but I do think it could be a potential spoiler in the Republican primaries. Well, I think that the risk is much greater in the general election. The primary election is going to be fought between people who are really interested in politics.

34:16I would push back against your groups because I think neocon versus non-interventionist. Those are those are groups, but they're not the only two. They're not the biggest two. I would say most people now aren't neocons. Neocon was a really it was a particular point in time. Not only are neocons and non-interventionists not the main categories, but I would suggest that most people who identify as conservatives or who vote Republican sort of sit somewhere in the middle, don't particularly care, but they sit somewhere in the middle of those things. And Trump himself - Depends on the conflict. Well, it does, but also Trump himself sounds like both of them.

35:05Sometimes Trump sounds very hawkish as he has here. Sometimes he sounds like a Jacksonian. Sometimes he sounds like a non-interventionist or even an isolationist. He's been called all sorts of names And that's because he contains multitudes. So I particularly like the setup because I don't think those are the groups. What I do think is possible, not necessarily because of this Iran war, but the situation, you suppose, where a third party comes along, I think it's possible as a general matter, because more and more Americans have moved into a non-partisan camp. and that has left the two parties more on the wings and primaries tend to elevate the people who are the most enthusiastic about politics within those two parties so at some point it does seem possible to me that someone will come along in the middle maybe using some of this populist energy and spoil an election i don't think they'd win but spoil an election that said the u.s does have a two-party system not because there are some shadowy figures on the wings who are dictating that, but just because of the way our system is set up.

36:17And it's quite difficult for that third party. I mean, Ross Perot tried twice. He may have played spoiler. Well, if Elon Musk can't get it going with his trillion dollars, which he did consider, you know, the average Joe is not going to make it happen. Yeah. And Elon Musk has the unfortunate position, Megan, of taking the view of politics that I hold, which is shared by about 3 % of the public, right? Which is that we need to get our fiscal house in order, which involves balancing budgets and cutting benefits and reforming Social Security. Yeah, no one wants to do that. No one wants to do that.

36:53And so, you know, Elon Musk is looking at it as an engineer, but engineers don't make good politicians. So, yeah, it could happen. But I just think, I don't want to discount politics as somebody who writes about it for a living. But I'm not even suggesting a third-party run, because I mean, maybe you could get on the ticket by going Green Party or Libertarian, but I'm thinking this will happen within the Republican Party in the fight for the nomination. Well, it already did. And it'll especially happen if J.D. chooses not to run. But that's what Trump is, right? I think he is going to run. That's what, I mean, he can't run again, but that's what has already happened within the Republican Party.

37:26That's what 2016 was. It was someone who came along, looked at all of those people on the stage, the other 16 people, and said, yeah, yeah, all of your categories are bunk. I'm a populist and a common sense guy, and I'm taking over the party. And I just... I guess what I'm saying is this person would really mean it. Like this person really would be a non-interventionist across the board, would definitely be making Israel an issue, which it is now for all Democrats, most independents, some Republicans, and run as an economic populist as well. I mean, like those three I named, I think all three of them would do it.

38:03and mtg too yeah and thomas massey was another i'm like i anyone could fill this particular niche and if they do do it jd vance is going to have to fend off that challenge more than a marco rubio is like that it's a niche it's almost like i think there's only one spot for that this person i want to keep going because to your point we're going to have that contest we're going to come up with a republican nominee and some faction of the gop is going to be unhappy and thinking maybe i'm just going to sit on my sofa come November. That'll be my middle finger to the world. And then they might see this.

38:36I'm going to stick with you for this, Charlie. They might see this. And you tell me if you were sitting on your couch, contrary to what you just told us, your plans are, you got it, you know, whatever, two-party system. And you saw this. Would it get you off the couch and down to your local polling station? Sat 30. This just happened on Tuesday. As the governor said, is where we should be unstoppable and know that there is so much that has already been done and can be done. What? To make the difference in a way that builds industries and creates efficiencies and creates leadership around helping the people see what can be unburned by OSN.

39:25is she drunk she sounds drunk totally do you know what that looks like it looks like a parody of public access television from the 90s the background that they're switching out the mics even though the mic was working did they think that the microphone was making her slur her words so quick get her a new one the mic was the problem she actually needed a coffee she was with Arnold Schwarzenegger at a climate speech in Austria. And who the hell knows what point she was trying to make. If you listen to the longer version, it doesn't get any better. But she hasn't changed, Charlie. She has not changed at all.

40:04You'll be glad to know. And, you know, people think the reason she's doing these events is because, and the book and the book tour, she really does believe she could get out there. So to your point, that would be a big motivator, no matter who they nominate on Team Red. Yeah, and also, I mean, not to relitigate the last conversation, but I think that the parties are not entirely rational, but they're quite rationally sorted. And so what you've described probably doesn't have enough purchase within the Republican Party to win the Republican nomination, precisely because it's so well represented on the other side.

40:43And partisanship, negative partisanship, which I don't think it's a bad thing, incidentally. I think I'm not in favor of mindless partisanship, but you hear this line in our politics that being against things is bad. You need to be for things. You should be for things. I'm for things. Being against things is also totally fine. It is totally rational and acceptable within a democracy to say, I don't want that. I don't like that person. I don't want to change this. I don't want to increase that tax. I don't want to open the border. You don't have to be, you don't have to provide some alternative.

41:14You can just say, no. In fact, it's often a sign of great satisfaction. A lot of politics in the 1990s, when people were pretty happy and the economy was well, was just don't do that. So I think she would provide a massive don't do that for anyone who's on the center right. Whatever you do. Now, while we're on the subject of presidential politics, Rich, I've got to ask you about the Obama Library. Okay, you're not going to believe this. I don't know if you saw this. But the Obama Library is going to be the official home of the latest Obama portrait that has just been unveiled. It will be hung in the museum's Hope and Change Lobby.

41:58hope and change lobby. It opens on Thursday. It's going to cost you a mere$30 to get in. So you can see this in person and you will be greeted. Wait until you see this by a nine by 10 foot work by artist Jideka Akunyil Crosby. It's a drawing. All right. Now at first blush, I don't know if you've seen this. You tell me, does anything jump out at you as a little off about this portrait, which is for the President Barack Obama library and museum, Rich? Are you referring to the figures not being quite completed? No, he's sitting at the back. He's in the back. She looks like she was president. And he looks like he was first partner as jennifer newson calls her typical presidential portraits to have the first lady with you maybe it is yeah but she's very prominent and it's so self-important with all the symbiotic the symbolism about plants i don't know there are certain plants associated with the obamas it's it's all about things in her past you know are in the background her dad's car yes all this stuff Let me tell you, it's not by accident.

43:12Okay, here's the story. This Crosby artiste says the portrait is about putting Michelle on the same level as Barack. Quote, I was thinking of a composition that would not preference one Obama over the other, but to treat them equally. It's like, yes, he was the president and she is this incredible, powerful, amazing, super respected person. They are like equal, says the artist. And that's what's going to greet you in the hope and change lobby, Rich. There you go. Yeah. I know maybe it's necessary to keep the marriage together. I don't judge other people's marriages, but she's a talented artist, this lady.

43:54But I think the portrait is absurd. The likenesses are good, but otherwise, all the stuff in the background, and it's just way too self-important. But I think technically well done, unlike the statue. I don't know whether you have an image of the statue. Of both of them, of course, equal standing is going to be part of this Obama plex, but it's very poorly done. Someone said of Lafayette he was a statue looking for a pedestal. Maybe that's true of both Barack and Michelle, but they're not going to look very good on their pedestal. Here's what author Joshua Lysak wrote on X, Charlie, that Michelle's in front, as you noted.

44:36She's facing the viewer directly. Barack isn't back. Michelle's in the seat of power. Barack is leaning into Michelle, right? Not like he's in the supportive role. Michelle's centered. barack's off center michelle is in a more dominant masculine pose with like the arms out the elbows out to the side you know like just try it just try it and um and then he points out that this is not going to help with her nickname basically um but you know she's in this more masculine pose and he's in more sort of a feminine on the table he doesn't even have a chair and yeah you would think that she were the president of the United States.

45:19And by the way, you won't be shocked to hear Michelle is the one who picked this Crosby for the product, saying she's wanted her for to work with them for a while. Now, now we see why. So I'm going to get in trouble for saying this, but she seems to hate him. Michelle Obama seems to hate Barack Obama. Like everything she says on her podcast is horrible. I mean, she she I'm not saying of course, your wife doesn't view you as the greatest person who's ever lived because she lives with you and she knows all of your flaws but i mean he's an intelligent guy he's a sort of tall guy he doesn't seem to have stepped out in his family he was president of the united states twice but she talks about him like he's a total moron you know the complaint you hear from men about sitcom dads that they're always idiots yeah there's never a positive role model in sitcoms she talks about him a little bit like that um and it's i i just think it's weird that that she spends all of her time on her podcast complaining about having been first lady complaining about having been married to obama saying fairly mean things about obama and then they suddenly have a portrait together for the opening of his library and he's in the back it seems pretty much selected to be the sitcom dad right that that was his role and he fulfilled it very very well but obama you know i'm not an obama a fan.

46:39He has a certain swagger to him, but you wouldn't guess it from that portrait. He used to. Yeah, exactly. He used to. And then they showed a picture. They put out a picture of the two of them looking at the picture. I love this. For the first time, I guess, in the Hope and Change lobby. And look at this. They're miserable. In the portrait that was drawn of them, they're smileless. And now the two of them actually looking at the portrait, They are smileless. Like, they put this out. They want to project, we're not joyful. We're kind of pissed off. They're in all black, by the way. Like, she's got this long black dress on.

47:14He appears to be wearing a dark suit, either black or the darkest gray. So the whole thing is sort of macabre, Rich, which dovetails perfectly with what we've heard from him and her since they left office. You know, her confessional about how she burst out into tears when she was in the helicopter leaving the inauguration of Trump because it was just so hard what we expected of them because they were black. This is a black reference because they were black. She had to be perfect, you know, because no other first lady has ever felt that way. Just she did because she was black. And, you know, the racist American people got lecture to thereafter about how braids she wore her braids in her first portrait in 2022 saying, I did this because I wanted I have this in front of me.

48:01This is that I wanted to send a message we have as a slot. Yeah, here it is. OK, yeah, this is what she said. She's so burdened as black women. We deal with it. The whole thing about do you show up with your natural hair? You know, break, y 'all. You know, but but, you know, as first lady, I did not wear breaks. the first black. Yeah, yeah. We got to ease up on the people. You know, it's like, because I thought about it. I was like, it would be easier. Nope, nope, they're not ready. They're not ready. Whitey, not ready. White racist America. She could take a lesson rich from the Europeans, from the German guy touring the country right now.

48:54Yeah, it's a lovely place. She makes it sound as though she's one of the most victimized people in America when she's really one of the most privileged people in America. You know, working class upbringing, but great parents. I love her stories about her dad, given every advantage and privilege on her way up in education and early employment. And then she's a world conquering celebrity, not really having done anything right. She didn't start a business. She didn't come up with any new idea. She was Brock's wife. She's become quite a skilled communicator, but that's not the biggest thing in the world, right?

49:28So are you. Yeah. No one would care about her being a skilled communicator if she weren't Barack's wife. And here she is in a painting in the Hope and Change lounge and has a statute and everyone's hanging on her every word. What is there for her to be unhappy about? Can I just add to this? This is the thing that annoys me the most about the Obamas is that the thing that I liked the most about Barack Obama is that he's black. By which I mean that I really do think it was a remarkable and beautiful thing that in 2008, a country that had had Jim Crow and slavery elected a black man as president.

50:04I think that was an affirmation of the Declaration of Independence and the American Creed. That's the thing I liked about him. And then everything else he ever did, I hated. So it's really quite irritating being told, oh, well, you just did. We used to get this in the Obama administration at National Review. People would say, well, whatever Obama does, you'll oppose it. And I wrote this piece once saying, just think about what you've just said. Do you really think that if Barack Obama woke up tomorrow morning and said, you know what, I've now realized that my politics were wrong. I'm now a pro-free market, pro-life, pro-constitution conservative.

50:37I love the Second Amendment. I'm for small government and federalism. And I think we should do the Paul Ryan tax plan. Do you think we'd have gone, oh, no, now we have to be against all of those things? I mean, it would have been the greatest day in the world. We'd have got the champagne out at 11 a.m. So this idea that the reason that people disliked him was because of that, I just think it's very annoying. That was the thing I liked about him the most. Here, our crack team, since we do cover this beat a fair amount, it's not my fault. They keep putting themselves out there. I remember when Barack Obama went and lectured all the men and was in middle America about how they were misogynists if they didn't get behind Kamala Harris.

51:13Like they both had prominent speaking roles at the Democratic National Convention. He was out there this week ripping on Trump in this Iran deal. Like they keep putting themselves out there. So fine. Let's talk about it. But here, to your point, Charlie, is what she said about them recently. It's one of the reasons why she's so miserable. And even in my marriage now, you know, you go through the period of I want him to be different. I want him to do this differently. I've grown to know I don't have control over him, just like he doesn't have control over me. So let me do my work and let him do our work.

51:47And together we come together as whole people. I go to therapy. We've been in couples therapy. I believe in the practice of having those conversations with objective people who help you piece through that stuff. And it's a constant, it's constant work. Is that how you talk about your wives? Everyone's in therapy. It's nonstop work, this marriage. Did you notice the construction? She said, let me do my work. Let him do our work. And then together. not quite sure that came out right i don't i don't think that would fly in my marriage i'm not sure how it would go in yours but i'm sure doug would really not appreciate me constantly being out there telling everybody all of his flaws how much work the marriage is how i can't stand him doing this that the other and never a word of praise that's the other thing she never says but he's great in this way but he takes such good care of me but he made me a household name No, nothing.

52:50Same for our country. Our country and Barack Obama are in the same place in Michelle Obama's heart, down at the bottom with a dark hue around them and something to be disdained. OK, got to take a break. We're going to come back with Rich and Charlie. And there's plenty more to discuss. Don't go away. For 250 years, Americans have believed in a powerful idea that we were meant to live free, free to work hard, to move, to enjoy life without being held back. But if everyday aches and pains are slowing you down, it might be time to declare your independence from pain. Relief Factor is a 100 % drug-free, research-based formula designed to help your body fight inflammation, which is one of the root causes of pain.

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55:19Back with me on this NR Day National Review are Rich Lowry and Charlie Cook. Rich, we found the statue to which you referred outside of the Obama Library. And at first glance, I didn't know what you were talking about. It's like the two of them walking, in a walking shot for the listening audience. They've got like their arms around each other and their free hands are waving to imaginary crowds. And then we zoomed in, Rich. Then we zoomed in on their faces. This is not an accurate or flattering likeness at all. You could argue it's almost racist, right? If it were done by a critic of Obama, you'd say it's racist.

55:59He's weirdly elongated his arms as well. I think the face looks like Ron Howard. Yeah, he looks like Ron Howard. He looks like Ron Howard. Doesn't he?

56:16And we zeroed in on her face. And I don't know who she looks like, but I can tell you this. It's not Michelle Obama. Maybe Sally Field. Yes, Sally Field. Oh, you're two for two. Two for two. That's who I was going with, too. Right? I knew someone once who was a fairly wealthy, successful businessman. He liked art. So he got all these replicas of famous pieces of famous Western paintings, but they're all done in China. So everyone had slightly slanty eyes. The Mona Lisa was slanty eyes. This guy, yeah, he must not have been working off pictures of Michelle and Baraker. I don't know what happened.

56:59At least in these, they're smiling. You would think they'd want to smile for their official portrait in the Hope and Change lobby. Like, you want to telegraph hopefulness, which is not the dour, angry, you know, grimace. But it was true to life. I'll give him that. Now, Michelle Obama is kind of in the news in connection with our next story, which is the meltdown over the UFC event on the White House lawn continues on the left. The latest is from Sheryl Crow. So people are mad. They're mad that that one fighter said Michelle Obama is a man. at the end of his fight. They don't like that. I get it.

57:39That's not a nice thing to say. And if you're a Michelle Obama fan, you definitely don't like it. I mean, it was a joke, whatever. But they're not really mad about it. That's not why they're ripping on this thing. They're mad that UFC fighters were on the White House lawn, that President Trump had this big event, that he's in office for the 250th. They're mad about that. They don't want him as the emcee of this celebration. And that brings me to Sheryl Crow. So she, I gotta get my readers for this because it's a lot. She posted the following online. Okay. She said, she wrote, to stay quiet in response to this means to turn a blind eye.

58:22And so I am saying this. What happened on the lawn of the White House was disgraceful and void of decency. powerful rich people filled the lawn to watch a violent sport that ended with a vile and racist comment all while the average american cannot afford health care gas and cost of living do not be fooled this administration is corrupt and does not give a damn about the american people it only cares about making money hand over fist as the at the expense and in spite of our democracy if we continue to support this kind of distraction from reality we are no better than them let's be better America.

58:59And it wasn't just Sheryl Crow, guys. There is a guy posted this on the Daily Wire. It was a great article called Leftist Hate Americans Who Love America. And he pointed out that A Mark Thiessen, back to Mark, had been praising the UFC event as Trump opening the doors to regular Americans, the kind who enjoy motocross rallies and monster truck shows. New York Times columnist Michelle Goldberg, we've discussed her before, responded by sneering that if you're OK with that, you're an elitist snob in reverse. Quote, like ultimate fighting, porn is extremely popular, but I somehow doubt Thiessen would defend a Democratic president who invited a bunch of OnlyFans creators to the Oval Office while he was losing a war.

59:49Then there's Jim Acosta, who had on his show historian Heather Cox Richardson, who's extremely popular with leftists, who said the following, quote, it's not really a stretch to say that the same impulse that created the UFC fight on the White House lawn is the impulse that really pushed lynching in the late 19th century. Wait, we have that on camera. Let's watch that together. In the Gilded Age, you did not have this open display of denigration of American symbols and American values. And that, you know, for all the fact, you might have disagreed with Carnegie about how you should build up the United States or with J.D.

1:00:34Rockefeller. They still argued that they were offering a way forward for the United States that would make it better for everybody. Now, and they were quite open about that. I mean, again, you don't have to agree with them, but they at least said that. What you are watching Trump do right now is deliberately tear that apart. And he is doing so on the same cultural argument, of course, that people use to back the first Gilded Age. That is these culture wars that turn white Americans against marginalized people of color. That's the bottom line there. So, I mean, it's not really a stretch to say that the same impulse that created the UFC fight on the White House lawn is the impulse that really pushed lynching in the late 19th century against black Americans overwhelmingly.

1:01:24I love Acosta's reaction. Make it make sense. Oh, yeah. Yeah. So wise. Look, we talked about this the other day in our podcast. I wouldn't do it. I think it's a little gauche. I would just do Easter egg rolls and Christmas decorations and signing ceremonies. But we passed that a long time ago. They light up the White House for different colors, for different events, etc. And the imagery around this thing is just extraordinary. The ones you showed, they're so well done, right? They're so patriotic. And this is a mainstream American sport that's extremely popular, overtook prize fighting a long time ago.

1:02:02And it wasn't just Jeff Bezos there. I know Zuckerberg was there, but it wasn't billionaires. It was a lot of military guys. and a lot of military guys got tickets through a lottery or whatever it was we have a colleague in Washington DC who's not a big UFC fan but managed to go her boyfriend and invited her and had a great time and by the way something that's been weirdly underappreciated or underplayed there was no kidding really serious as far as we can tell terror plot around this event to attack this event and not just a lone wolf one crazy person but apparently was a really serious cell that had a multi-layered plan to create mayhem and depth around event that ultimately, yes, about Trump and glamorizing himself and doing what he likes.

1:02:47That's his character and his persona, but also the flyovers and flags. It's patriotic imagery that shouldn't be partisan, but unfortunately is. Yeah. It's just like, what, slavery and Jim Crow to have the UFC? so okay what do you think of it charlie all of those people are crazy with the exception of heather cox richardson is a disgraceful cynic heather cox richardson's job is to tell credulous upper middle class white women including jim acosta that their conception of this president is backed by the worst parts of american history that is what heather cox richardson does she finds things from history and then connects them to what's happening today and tells people who've never thought about history in any serious way that their instincts are correct.

1:03:40Now, I wouldn't have done this because I don't want our imperial presidency. You know my views on this. I'm a Calvin Coolidge guy. I would like the president to be quiet, but it didn't matter. I don't like it, but it didn't matter. It's a bit like the Kennedy Center. I don't think Trump should have put his name on it I think it's probably illegal but it's not the most important thing in the world. Jim Acosta, did you see the video of him outside the Kennedy Center when they were supposed to be taking Trump's name off it? So this behavior you've just seen with this UFC fight is now reflexive. Jim Acosta was there late at night waiting for the construction crew to take Trump's name off.

1:04:20He's got a camera on him and he says two things in quick succession. One he says this is It's just like being at the fall of the Berlin Wall. And then he says... It's unbelievable. And then he says that this shows what we can do when mankind... And then he corrects himself and says, I mean humankind, because of course you can't say mankind. He says when humankind stands up to tyranny. So the problem is not people who are criticizing having a UFC fight on the lawn. And it's not people who don't think the Kennedy Center should be the Trump Kennedy Center. The problem is the escalation of these very small and unimportant things to that.

1:05:00Comparing them to Jim Crow and lynching and the East German walls and tyranny. I mean, it's... This is one reason, incidentally, I think Trump was president twice. It's just no one can ever hold their fire. They can never put what Trump actually does in context and tell their allies to shut up about everything else. It's just stupid. I mean, well, the whole Kennedy Center thing, like it didn't go well, I grant you. But Trump was trying to fix a center that had been pandering to the left for decades. All the acts that went there were Democrats who had supported the most recent Democrat in whatever election we'd had.

1:05:42The people who got honored every year were open and committed Democrats. Once in a rare blue moon, you'd see a right leaning person over there, but almost never. Nothing's coming to mind. I think the reason I mean, yes, Trump loves to have his name on everything. We all know that about Trump. But I think he was also trying to telegraph. There's a new sheriff in town. This is not your grandfather's Kennedy Center. Like, hey, conservatives, give us a shot because you're going to see your people here now that we've renamed it. And Rick Grinnell is running it. We're trying to get the word out. But of course, his worst detractors always go to the most negative place with him.

1:06:17It's all about self aggrandizement. And I realize with Trump, there is an element of that. But no credit for just trying to actually maybe reach out to a wider audience, which, again, is what he was trying to do on the White House lawn with UFC. Not in any way some homage to Jim Crow, which is like freaking crazy talk. Now, speaking of Crow, Sheryl Crow, this is in her first foray into politics. I was at the 2008 coronation of Barack Obama at Invesco Field out in Denver when he accepted the nomination with the Greek columns, remember? And she was there. She played. And so did James Taylor. He's always at these Democrat things.

1:07:01But she—wait a minute. Who was the guest? It was James Patterson came on the show last Friday and told me that he worked in a psychiatric facility. And when he was there, James Taylor was there as a young man in the psychiatric facility singing songs. This was before he was famous. I never really got to find out what was he doing in the psychiatric facility. Whatever. Back to Sheryl Crow. She posted this video not long ago on her social media of her waving goodbye to her, wait for it, Tesla. Remember? In 2025. That's crazed. Watch this.

1:07:47OK, so now she wants us to understand, like, she's the person who's going to be the spokesperson rich for, like, working class Americans and their plight. And that's why this whole thing was so inappropriate at the White House. Meanwhile, she waved goodbye to her, what,$70 ,000,$60 ,000 automobile because of the politics perceived of the owner of the company. Not many people can do that. Yeah, your car shouldn't be political. It's a wonderful car. If you liked it enough to buy it, it's quite pricey. Not that the price matters to her. It's probably subsidized by the government. Why are you getting rid of it just because you don't like Elon Musk?

1:08:24And by the way, the idea that Sheryl Crow is lecturing us about how a UFC fight isn't working class, you know, someone who's never been to a UFC fight, whereas this is a sport that indeed has a lot of working class appeal, it just gets to how this celebrity politics is so twisted and so out of touch. Another element of the Obama Plex, Obama Library thing we could hit on, he's got legit like A-list singing talent performing at the opening or whatever it is, right? in a way that Trump never could score. So it's always good for them putting on shows, but it also misleads them because they think that's the real world and they think people actually listen to what those people say and follow their political directions and they just don't ever.

1:09:10That's a very good point. Let's talk about that terror plot that was thwarted because that really was disturbing. I hate to draw too much attention to it because you don't want to give anybody ideas. But I mean, to me, it's part of the just, the assassination culture that we're sadly living in in 2026 America. This is from CNBC. Tyson Proper, 19-year-old Ohio man charged in connection with an alleged plot to attack the UFC event at the White House on Sunday, citing court documents. Investigators said the alleged plan involved explosive-laden drones near the arena and shooters who were then going to target people as they fled.

1:09:50there's some scuffle between the Secret Service and Kash Patel at the FBI they're mad he quote jumped the gun on disclosing details of what had been a sealed and continuing investigation but in any event the FBI disrupted the alleged plot thankfully and it says that it was a detailed plan that these guys had with these drones and so on let's see the complaint was signed June 12th two days before Trump hosted the event so they were on to these people. They never actually got onto the White House South lawn, but they report that a search of this guy proper's iPhone revealed encrypted group chats that laid out detailed plans to conduct an attack on DC with several unidentified Confederates and that it was rather sophisticated.

1:10:36It forced, it was going to force spectators and quote, high value targets to evacuate again, where they would then be shot. They thought this would be a jumpstart of a revolution in the United States. I don't know, guys. This is like, this is dark. And the drone technology, you know, sadly, that's what they used in Iran. We're seeing it used by the Ukrainians to fight Russia. And I guess it's just a matter of time before we see it unleashed on innocents domestically in some piece of this assassination culture or the latest iteration of mass terror events here? Your thoughts on it? Well, it's awful.

1:11:21You know, I oppose all violence, obviously, but it's at a different level than assassination, right? Because they're not even targeting Trump. They're just targeting people who happen to be at this event that Trump has sponsored, totally innocent people, not that Trump was there, obviously, but the turpitude of it is horrible. And then, you know, we have to learn more, but what seems to be the sophistication of at least the planning, we have seen a couple of these. There's one a year or so ago that didn't get a ton of attention down in Texas, where there's kind of a pro-trans anti-ice cell. And And this was seven or eight young people who like this, it was kind of elaborate.

1:12:01They staged some sort of disturbance in the parking lot in the hopes the ICE guys would run out of the facility and then they shot at them from the woods. So this is no kidding domestic terrorism. And I think you're right. It's only a matter of time till something like this succeeds. But it's an ongoing threat. And it is like further evidence that the FBI in particular has had a black eye over the past few years. And I know you're no fan of it either, Charlie, but there is a role for federal law enforcement. And this is exactly what that role is, by the way. Well, and especially in Washington, D.C., which is a federal district.

1:12:39So you would have to have some sort of federal law enforcement there. Whatever you did with the FBI, I mean, you mentioned the part of this that scares me the most, which is drones. I'm a technophile. I think drones can be very useful. But they are going to force us if we haven't already to rethink security. And if you take the obvious example of an NFL stadium or Disney World, these are protected, assuming there are no drones. I mean, the assumption is that you have to keep people who might do harm out of the perimeter. And so you act accordingly. But a drone just flies up drops in. And the United States is really virtuous in the way it treats its airspace.

1:13:28We're very open society compared to most we don't have draconian restrictions on airspace in most places. And pretty much anyone without having to file permission slips can get on an airplane take off and land at any airport providing they radio the tower. Well, drones complicate this. And I just hope and I know nothing about this, of course, but I hope that the security services have cottoned on to this because there's a difference between stopping a plot like this before it happens because you hear about it or you infiltrate it or you intercept the messages and stopping this happening once it has been put into motion.

1:14:10And I really don't want to see what that latter circumstance looks like. Yeah, I agreed. We were on vacation with our family three or four years ago, and the last leg, we were in France, of the tour brought us to this beautiful resort on a hillside, and I was out there in the morning having my coffee. And it's the morning, so I have my robe on, and that's it. No hair, makeup, whatever. It's a vacay. And I was sitting there enjoying myself, having a moment of zen, the beautiful view in France, up comes a drone right over me. And you don't know what it is, who it is, who's controlling it. You know, my, my suspicion at the time was like paparazzi, right?

1:14:55Cause like, if they get wind that you're on vacation, they've taken pictures of my family and me before. And then the next thing you know, your vacation is public and you never know who you're telegraphing to, but like, who wants to be spied on and have their pictures splashed all over newspapers during their morning coffee while on vacation. It's just like, and that's to say nothing of the actual security risks of these things. If they're carrying something dangerous, some makeshift pipe bomb, what have you, it's just yet another thing we're going to have to deal with as we move into, you know, further into the 21st century.

1:15:31Oh, joy. Hopefully, you're a technophile, Charlie. Hopefully we'll find sort of iron dome ways for America of not stopping this. Certainly at places like a Disneyland or a Disney World where you can't. There's some sort of imaginary wall there that's manned by lasers, et cetera, that's too smart for these guys. That's my hope. Technology should help us in this situation more than it hurts us. Okay, I want to keep going. We mentioned these people who hate America, who we were talking about, like the, whatever, the ones who can't stand the USC and think it's an example of modern day slavery, whatever it is.

1:16:09That is contrasted, as I pointed out, with these Europeans who are coming through for the World Cup. I heard you guys discuss this on the editors too. They're so joyful. It's so great to listen to these guys because they're experiencing our country for the first time. And so it gives you the chance to see some of the things that we take for granted through fresh eyes. And it's wonderful. And Wokeness Online put together a montage of some of these guys who watch Sat 23B. Everybody's so friendly, sovereign hospitality. The air smells nice. When you're in the UK, okay, if you're next to the beach, it smells.

1:16:44The beach doesn't smell here, right? No, everything's for you.

1:16:51I can refill this a thousand times. Yeah, but you won't drink a thousand cups of Coca-Cola. You don't know me. And it's free. You paid for it. You paid it. Once. Bro, slow down. Free refills.

1:17:10It's the best burger. Honestly, it's so good. And then I also got the animal style fries. And the diet lemonade for balance. It's pink. I just love it here. And they get to fight human trafficking, which is awesome. They have Bible verses on the bottom of their cart. Never. You can see. But yeah, look at that burger. It's so good. And then we've got the sunset. I love America. I can never leave.

1:17:48The German guy, he's been amazing. I think it was, is that the guy who was on Jake Tapper? The German guy, you guys? Yeah, we'll watch a little. He went on Jake Tapper, sat 22. What do you make of all the viral content coming out of this tournament and all the love for the European tourists from the American people as you show us our country with fresh eyes? Yeah, I know Freddie. He's a nice guy. He's from close to me. So I've been talking to him. He's loving it. He's more touring the South. I did Chicago. And I think it's more like because in Europe, we have a lot of rather negative news about the Americans in the last five years, let's say that.

1:18:26And I think we are all enjoying the fact that this country is so great to visit. People are amazing, so welcoming. The culture is amazing. It's like Europeans are getting a new view of America right now, I think, also through our content. And that's cool, I think. So this has just been so great, right? because it's like they're seeing places like Waffle House, which I know that's down by you in Florida, right, Charlie? Waffle House, we don't have those really up by me. Buc-ee's, and they're falling in love with how big and like the facilities are, the offerings, the meals and so on. And it's like, I've seen a lot of people say this online and I totally second it, which is wait till you get a load of our diners.

1:19:08Wait until you get a load of like the corner bar, the corner pub, Charlie Cook, that's your favorite place. Like the real America to like when you dig a little deeper has all that charm and more. And the testimonials about the people have been so great. Just how friendly they are, how they Americans, they make eye contact. They offer to help you. If you ask for directions, they'll walk you to the next spot. There was a French guy being like, this does not happen in France. Trust me. So it's such a feel good moment, Charlie. Yeah. So I love this because this is how I feel, of course, as well. But the thing that I like the most about it is less that Americans who didn't like America to start with are seeing people like America.

1:19:54They should have already known. But the Europeans who are coming here are having the propaganda they've been sold wiped away. A couple of weeks ago I was in New York and we took the kids to the Statue of Liberty in Ellis Island. And there's this plaque there and it has a story on it of a woman from Russia. And she said that when she went up to a cop when she first moved to the United States, she was shocked that he didn't hit her. Because they'd been told in the Soviet Union that that's what American cops would do, right? It was supposed to be this sort of barbaric place. And it's not quite on that level, but I really must implore Americans to understand that what Europeans are told about America all the time by the news, but also by entertainment, is relentlessly negative.

1:20:44It bears no resemblance to what America is actually like, to what Americans are actually like. And so when the German guy in that clip says, you know, what we have heard in the last five years is very negative. Yeah, it will have been. It will have been everywhere. And then to come to the United States and see what it's actually like must be absolutely astonishing. In one way, it must completely rewire your worldview. I saw an English guy on Twitter yesterday who ended up in an American hospital. I don't think he did nothing stupid, but he just he needed to use the hospital while he was here. And he was amazed, too, because I think what he'd been told is either we don't have any or that they take your credit card when you walk in.

1:21:24You know, everyone in there is is sort of corrupt or redneck. I don't know what he thought, but he said it was a really nice hospital. I had a really good visit to the hospital. And I thought, well, yeah, because you're in a very technologically advanced, innovative, rich country, which is actually ahead of most of Europe in its technology in medicine. So it's just great to watch this because the only way you can really get past all of that negative propaganda is to come and visit yourself. You know, Rich, it's kind of reminding me, just because I'm in the middle of this. For some reason, I decided to order and read the autobiography of Katharine Hepburn.

1:22:05I just always thought she was cool and I wanted to know more about her. She was born in 1907 and she was one of six, second child, was raised in Connecticut, where I live now, and was the daughter of a suffragette, like remembers actively campaigning for women to get the vote. Anyway, she came up at a time that wasn't great, I would say, versus today for women. You know, like she didn't quite have the same race. She couldn't even vote. Her parents, her mother couldn't vote when she was a child. Zero complaints. She had an attitude, which I've been talking to Doug about. Like every page is like, life is so amazing.

1:22:42It's so exciting. There's so many opportunities. And she loved Connecticut. Love, love, love, love, love. I love the change of seasons too. But it's like she talks about it. like all the things that are so beautiful about it. And sometimes you need that reminder, whether it's from a book like this or our German friend or the people from France, what have you, of how lucky you are. Just didn't the amazing gifts that are all around you just by virtue of the fact that you won the lottery and were born in the United States of America. Totally. This guy, Freddie, what a trek he's on. He was posting videos yesterday of getting a tour of the Artemis rocket.

1:23:17I mean, someone's going to make a movie. God, it's unbelievable. But yeah, they're stunned, especially given, as Charlie points out, what they hear from the European press, which is all guns, violence, you know, things they don't like about Trump, to come here in this land that's so abundant, that's so open, that's so convenient, that's so friendly. And you're so right that none of us created any of this, really. Some of us have done our little bits, you know, across our careers or whatever. But it was bequeathed to us by being Americans, right? And one of the most depressing things about the country last week or two, we've had this polling, this NBC poll over the weekend.

1:23:55It shows pride in the country. People are extremely very proud of America. It's down, I think, a new low, 56 % if you have those two categories up. And the Democrats' numbers are just in the toilet. This kind of goes back to the Michelle Obama conversation. You should just be so filled with gratitude for being here in this country at this time and place. And if it takes Europeans coming over here and discovering free refills and that you can actually get ice in your soda to remind us of it, so be it. It's a great thing. Yeah, amen. I want to see way more of all of these guys. It's just a great reminder.

1:24:33And I love the things that they're pointing out because they are great. You know, it's like it is amazing. You go to the Waffle House, like whatever your heart desires, it's right there. And the all-you-can-eat buffets, it's like you could keep going. And honestly, for me, too, having spent the last 17 years in Manhattan, so many wonderful little shops, less thanks to de Blasio and now Mom Donnie. It's really I can't blame Mom Donnie. It was really Bill de Blasio tried to ruin New York. But those mom and pop shops, those small delis, the bakeries, the small shops that, you know, the shopkeepers put up, whether they're bookstores or clothing stores, just so much charm, so much character.

1:25:13I love that stuff about our big cities as well. We don't have the European age in terms of the buildings and so on. And not all of our modern architecture is that beautiful. But man, we have culture galore. And it's ours. It's uniquely ours. When it comes to your dogs, why does there always seem to be a compromise when we're talking about their food? It's either fresh and healthy or easy to store and serve. With Sundays for Dogs, you get both. And your dog gets the best. Founded by Dr. Tori Waxman, a veterinarian and mom who got tired of seeing so-called premium dog food full of fillers and synthetics, she designed Sundaes, air-dried real food made in a human food-grade kitchen using the same ingredients and care you would use to cook for yourself and your family.

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1:29:29Rich and Charlie from National Review are back with me now. So guys, there's been a controversy involving the San Francisco Giants, Rich? Mm-hmm, yeah. You're the baseball fan. Okay, I knew it was San Francisco. And they, of course, it being San Francisco, and this was happening in like a lot of MLB not too long ago, They decided to recognize Pride Month by making the SF on the caps rainbow. Taste the rainbow, as they say. And a couple of players decided, they didn't, you know, object, but they added a reference to a Bible verse that actually does talk about rainbows. It's Genesis 9, 12 through 16.

1:30:17The verse reads as follows. And God said, this is the sign of the covenant that I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you for all future generations. I've set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth. When I bring clouds over the earth and the bow is seen in the clouds, I will remember my covenant that is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh. And the water shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. When the bow is in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.

1:30:51So this is obviously some Christian players deciding to reframe what the rainbow that was forced upon them in those letters means to them, which seems perfectly reasonable. They didn't get to decide whether they had their logo changed. And here was the reaction from the worst person in America. Truly, this guy is my least favorite politician or soon to be American U.S. congressman. He's going to win Nancy Pelosi's old seat. Scott Weiner, the vile, awful Scott Weiner. Here's his response. Oh, sorry. No, it's written. And those are actually old quotes from him. I'll find it. But he is angry. Where is this?

1:31:47Is this an AM update, you guys? I'm trying to find it. He's very pissed off that they have done this, and he thinks the San Francisco Giants need to do something about this, that they need to crack down somehow on these players. I'll find it until I do. Rich, your thoughts? Yeah, so he said something like, of all days, Why couldn't they have done this on 364 other days rather than writing this Bible verse on this day, on Pride Night? Which gets totally wrong who the aggressor is here, right? These players are being made to wear a social and political symbol that they don't support, that counters their Christian values.

1:32:27So it's a form of enforced speech, and this is their dissent from that enforced speech. speech. So look, if you're San Francisco Giants, you're probably gonna have a pride night. You know, I wouldn't do it. I don't particularly like it. But changing the uniform and making that a symbol, NHL teams have done this as well. That's a step beyond. It's making these people assent to it. And that's, at the end of the day, that's a big part of the point here. There's a council member out there who had a tweet thread, a thread on X, where he was saying, if you're not okay with this and you're causing so much dissension on the team that you're writing your bible verse or one of these guys just wore the traditional cap rather than wearing the rainbow cap maybe you don't belong in the major leagues like how crazy and despicable ill and authoritarian is that these guys work their whole lives literally since they're kids to get highly proficient at this uh sport that's extremely difficult to perform at the highest level and they're not supposed to play for a major league team unless they're on board with rainbow symbols.

1:33:35And these guys, they are taking a career risk because two or three years ago, there's a Blue Jays pitcher who just liked an Instagram post. Remember, there was an anti-target boycott having to do with this sort of stuff. And he was literally cut from the team. He never heard from again, a guy named Anthony Bass. That is crazy. All right, I found it. Here's what he said. He's criticizing the Giants and the several players who he claims defaced their Pride Night ball caps with a biblical passage, that the biblical passages defaced the pride messaging. Unbelievable, Charlie. He goes on to say several players defaced their pride caps with a biblical passage that it has been hijacked by homophobes to take back the rainbow from LGBTQ people.

1:34:27I'm pretty sure he's got the order of events wrong. I just think the argument in general is disingenuous. The argument runs a little bit like this, that it's a private institution. It sort of is. They do have a federal exemption from antitrust law, but it's a private institution. And this is the uniform. and if you play for the team then you wear the uniform okay sounds innocuous enough but the next step is well there's nothing wrong with adding the pride night paraphernalia to the uniform because it's a constitutional right okay well so is the second amendment but if a team put you know second amendment stuff on their uniform and then told everyone to wear it i think some people would would disagree they would dissent that's fine um and the same people who are now complaining would say that that was their free speech right that's why you don't do this right that's why you shouldn't accept in extreme circumstances something that genuinely ought to be completely unifying and uncontroversial like you know america 250 or july 4th patch or something that's why you just shouldn't do this as institutions and as rich says there is a big difference between hosting a theme night whether that's pride night or not and changing the uniform it's the uniform part of this uh that makes this a bit ugly and then major league baseball saying that there'll be consequences uh for further altering uh the uniform i think that and i say this is somebody who's pretty pro-gay and has always been in favor of gay marriage although i thought the supreme court decision in a burger file was a disaster and is wrong but i'm not somebody who is is hostile toward gay people but I think some of the skepticism you're seeing not just toward Pride Month but toward gay marriage that has popped up in the last five years a reversal of approval of such things is the product of exactly this sort of conduct because the winning argument was why do you care you do your thing we'll do our thing let's leave each other alone.

1:36:35That prevailed. That was quite popular. And now there's a lot of coercion and you get representatives saying that this is a disgrace and you get people calling for Major League Baseball to kick these people out. And I think people hate it and I think they should. Yeah, you will celebrate my thing. That's the new messaging. You must. Okay, got to get this in before we leave. Emily Rodakowski. She's a model. She's an actress too. She was in Gone Girl. She has 28 million Instagram followers. And she's out now with this new magazine piece in New York Magazine's The Cut. And it's entitled Mother Effer.

1:37:21After becoming a single mom, I began compulsively dating in order to figure out what kind of woman I wanted to be. The cover of the piece shows her topless. She's got a top on, but it's open and her breasts are hanging out. And it looks like a real baby, but we're told it's actually a doll who she has posed as though he's breastfeeding off of one of her breasts. And the whole piece is about how after she gave birth to her son, six months later, and her husband stopped having sex and she became the thing she never wanted to be, which was a single mother. And she writes about this process in the most vile and crude terms.

1:38:07I mean, honestly, like, I don't even know if I can read her description of having her son. She makes it so disgusting and awful. You know, it's like, that's not, I think most women remember some pain around the birth, but like when you ask them about the birth, they might say, oh yeah, I was in a lot of pain. But then the very, very next thing they'd say is how wonderful the baby is and what it's like to become a mother and the miracle of that first moment. That's not really how she describes it. She's talking a lot about what happened down South in Rio that needed to be mended up later after the fact.

1:38:37So she talks now about how she's now become a slut, really. That's what she's decided to do as a soothing balm, I guess, and talks about how she never had had a one-night stand prior to her separation, but now she wants to be a whore. I decided to F my way into a new kind of woman. I wanted to destroy the Madonna, the special girl I'd worked so hard to be before an eight-pound baby had torn my vagina in two and replace her with the whore. And she's celebrating how now she goes to bed with anyone, but she does make it home in time for her son to wake up at 6 a.m. no matter how many martinis she's had and how many men she's had.

1:39:24And I guess, Rich, we're supposed to celebrate this as an example of female empowerment. And by the way, it's from the same woman who wrote a whole thing about how she hates, hates being sexually objectified by men, contrary to the photos you're seeing on your screen, which you would be forgiven for misunderstanding as a desperate request to be objectified. Yeah, this is clearly a luxury lifestyle. I don't think this is a reaction of most people to becoming single moms as having this extraordinary run of promiscuity as she describes it. Also, most people don't have available to them just being able to go out to bars and sleep around and someone else, some unnamed person is watching their children.

1:40:08It's also kind of laughable when she says that what these guys find attractive about her is actually her motherhood. It turns out I'm not sure that's what they're really attracted to here. So this is bizarre and unworthy. And let's hope she has enough wisdom 10 years from now, whatever, is to look back at this piece and her behavior and be ashamed. Let's hope her kid never sees it. Can I say, Charlie, shame on the cut for running this. It's like young girls who don't have Emily's followers on Instagram or her money or her name. Sadly, some faction of them may be inspired by this. Like, oh, yeah, she seems much happier now, in her own words, becoming a whore.

1:40:50Maybe I should try it. Well, I agree with you. I'm not sure you can put shame on the cut. The cut is a source of the most crazy and silly stories of the last five years. You remember that story in the cut about the lady who put$50 ,000 in a shoebox because she got some scam text message? That was a great one. That was a great one. You and I discussed that. Yeah, but she was like a finance writer. She was like a financial advice writer. So the cut really does find these stories and puts them out there. So I sort of expect it from them. The bad behavior is more from her. and I really don't know much more to say than that, Megan.

1:41:35I think we all instinctively agree it's gross. I'm just looking at their headlines right now. The Obamas still believe in hope and change. Let's see. How does Calista Gingrich's hair do that? I mean, that's a legitimate question. My first orgasm cost$10 ,000. That's why she put 50 grand in the shoebox. wrote a book to convince you his wife doesn't hate him. That's basically what you're going to get over there. What did you say, Charlie? I said if it's$10 ,000 in orgasm, she put$50 ,000 in a shoebox. Maybe that piece now makes more sense. Did you see the picture of Calista and Trump? I'm not even sure you get to 10 grand.

1:42:14Did you see the picture of Calista and Trump the other day with their hair looking exactly the same? Yes. It doesn't blow. It's amazing. You know what Calista Gingrich's hair reminds me of? My friend and former makeup artist Maureen used to say this. Fondant on a wedding cake. Totally. Uh-huh. You know, it's not real icing. It's just like this weird thing that doesn't ever move. And she's had it like that for decades. I've never seen a hair out of place like in the whipping winds. It holds like she should be working with NASA, Rich.

1:42:47Same with Trump. Trump's occasionally moves. It's bad when it moves, but it but it usually doesn't. It's true. I don't I feel like Michelle Obama thinks we're obsessed with her braids and we're not. And Calista Gingrich doesn't think we care about her hair and we do, you know, like it's actually something to be respected, honestly. Well, I'm worried about this kind of messaging because I feel like with the reboot of Sex and the City, which was terrible messaging for an entire generation, and just this new class of, I don't know, modern day feminists who want to kind of dump on the right that says, hey, consider being a mom, consider getting married, consider that as a viable option for you at a young age, by the way, before you develop infertility problems and so on.

1:43:27You got the people on the other side saying, or just become a whore or talk about the birth of your child like it was human torture. And that's the only thing you remember. And then tout the martinis, the sneaking into your home at six and a whore. Not only that, but she points out that the man she was dating says she looks like Cleopatra when she gives a blowjob. So I'm sure there are a lot of options, as you point out, men who would like to understand that firsthand. We'll leave it at that. Guys, great to see you. So everybody go sign up for NR and become a premium member like I am. You won't be sorry you did.

1:44:01Thanks for listening to The Megyn Kelly Show. No BS, no agenda, and no fear. www.furtilizer .com

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From the publisher

Megyn Kelly is joined by Rich Lowry, editor-in-chief of National Review, and Charles C.W. Cooke, senior writer of National Review, to discuss what's behind President Trump's interest in a deal with Iran, the reaction to what we're learning about the deal so far, the Trump administration's need to focus on the economy ahead of the midterms, divisions within the Republican party over the Iran conflict and foreign policy, what the fractures could mean for the GOP primary in 2028, the new Obama Library portrait of Barack and Michelle Obama with Michelle front and center, why it always seems Michelle resents Barack, the ridiculous backlash to the UFC event at the White House, a Resistance historian claiming it's actually about racism, Sheryl Crow's absurd comments, Europeans visiting America for the first time for the World Cup and loving it, viral praise for the little luxuries of America and how friendly everyone is that many Americans take for granted, MLB players getting backlash for writing bible verses on their Pride Month hats, Emily Ratajkowski’s vile comments in a recent "The Cut" feature about being a slutty mom after her divorce, and more.
 


Lowry- https://www.nationalreview.com
Cooke- https://x.com/charlescwcooke
 


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