Is Your Gas Bill About to Spike? Trump's Strategy Explained

0:00 Welcome to the Tara Palm Mary show and the red letter.

0:03 We have a special guest with us again, Robert Wolf,

0:06 who was a former advisor to President Obama on his economic team,

0:12 informal, but still very helpful during the 2008 crisis.

0:16 Um, he also advises a number of politicians now.

0:20 He was former chairman and president of C and CEO of UBS.

0:25 Robert, thanks so much for joining the show.

0:28 So much to get into today.

0:31 Yeah.

0:31 Crazy day.

0:32 Crazy day.

0:33 You wake up to news, you go to sleep to news and everything in between.

0:37 I don't know how you guys do it, but God bless you.

0:40 Yeah, that's uh sort of how it works.

0:42 Got to roll with it.

0:43 You know, kind of makes us us news people a little ADHD

0:47 because we're just darting around from uh story to story to story.

0:51 But we all woke up to Operation Project

0:54 Freedom by way of Truth Social from President

0:58 Trump basically announcing that he was going

1:00 to have guided missile destroyers attempt to help

1:03 these barges carrying fuel and um petroleum

1:09 and and fertilizer to move through the straight

1:11 of Bormoose for other countries that like Europe

1:14 and Asia that really need access to this straight.

1:17 And you know this is so altruistic and everything.

1:20 Um, but Iran announced just hours later that they'll shoot down

1:25 any US military presence in the straight or on the land.

1:28 I mean, um, what did you think when you saw this, Robert?

1:33 I I thought this is just another failed attempt to try to open up the straight.

1:38 So, I'm not going to say it's as bad as Liberation Day, uh, you know,

1:42 from April a year ago when he announced the tariffs,

1:45 which felt like it was the Game of Thrones red wedding for execution.

1:50 But this to me is just more noise because to me the most

1:55 important thing they said is that they're going to guide and not escort.

1:59 And so I don't know what ships are going

2:02 to want to go through the straight with mines everywhere,

2:05 not escorted by by the US, but just go.

2:09 It's kind of like going on their own.

2:10 Hey, we'll tell you where to go.

2:12 And by the way, it's not like we know where all the mines are.

2:15 So to me, it feels like a a failed experiment.

2:19 uh you know and then obviously you know what you just mentioned

2:23 with Iran said afterwards um I would I would have a whole

2:28 different plan um you know um I would probably if I was

2:34 in the president's shoes I would try to figure out how do

2:36 I get to nuclear deal 2.0 0 where you talk about enrichments

2:41 and ballistic missiles you know in lie of you know the sanctions

2:46 and and I actually would probably let Iran start thinking about tolling

2:52 um you know similar to what Egypt does in the Suez Canal.

2:55 I I think that this just isn't believable.

2:58 That is like a complete capitulation for Trump though to get back

3:03 to the table with Iran and allow them to have a nuclear weapon which

3:07 not have a nuclear weapon.

3:08 I would say nuclear 2.0.

3:10 So I would do similar to what President Obama did with uh China and Russia.

3:16 That being said, it would, you know, limit uranium buildup,

3:20 but I also would add missiles and ballistics.

3:23 And for that, I would think about the tolling.

3:26 But then you're just giving then you're

3:27 actually enriching Iran by allowing them to toll.

3:31 Uh you're basically allowing them to continue

3:34 their uranium program because they will do it.

3:37 No.

3:37 Well, well, we should be clear.

3:38 If you looked at the nuclear deal 2.0, they weren't enriching uranium.

3:42 That's not um they weren't doing that.

3:45 They were actually being um being looked at uh by intelligence.

3:50 And now they've built up since since we've had no check and balance.

3:54 Also, by the way, if you open the Suez Canal,

3:58 if you think about what energy would do,

4:00 energy would go from north of $100 a barrel down to, my guess below 60.

4:05 So, if you're tolling a dollar a barrel,

4:08 you're actually lowering everyone's price dramatically.

4:11 Number two, I think you can This is to me during

4:16 the idea of we're trying to do an Iran Iran deal 2.0.

4:20 It doesn't need to be forever.

4:22 I just think it's a way to start having a real negotiation

4:25 because right now it feels to me there's no exit strategy in sight.

4:29 The other thing is, you know,

4:31 President Trump is one of the greatest marketers ever.

4:34 Whether you believe it or not or like him or not,

4:36 you know, we wake up to him, we go to sleep to him.

4:39 And to me, he could say, "Listen, we killed Ayatollah.

4:43 We impacted the regime.

4:44 We've deteriorated a lot of their ballistic missile capability.

4:48 We've deteriorated a lot of their enrichment capacity.

4:51 And so now we're going to actually look at a different deal.

4:54 And if you get Russia and China on that side

4:56 like President Obama did on nuclear deal 1.0, there could be a deal to be made.

5:02 To me, we're just at this impass that's just not working.

5:06 I that seems like a really big lift and there is demand right now.

5:11 I can't imagine that they would come to that agreement anytime soon.

5:15 And you know I I heard today that even

5:17 if they did resume to normal passage through

5:20 the straight of Armuse it would take six months

5:22 for the supply chain to even come back to normal.

5:27 You know listen there there's all

5:29 different whether it's three months six months.

5:31 We have lost 900 million barrels of supply.

5:37 It's about 13 to 14 million per day and we're going north of 60 days.

5:43 I mean, we're not talking about this like the 2022 Ukraine Russia shock.

5:47 We're talking about the shock on energy supply is more like Carter in the 70s.

5:53 I mean, this is one of the most dramatic oil shocks we've ever had.

5:58 Now the positive is if you want to see some light

6:01 at the end of the tunnel Tara the posit the positive is you know

6:06 some of the largest countries you know in the world like China

6:09 and South Korea and Japan because of what happened to them during 2022

6:14 in Ukraine and and Russia um they have started to stockpile energy

6:19 so they're good for 100 to 200 days and then the best case

6:23 for us in the US we're totally energy independent we're actually supplying

6:27 more energy in L and LNG than we ever have in the past.

6:31 So, so you could argue that um yes, for places like Pakistan and other places

6:37 where there's rationing and blackouts, it's horrible.

6:40 But there's a deal to be done and I think

6:43 we have to include our um our adversaries and our allies.

6:48 So, China as well as the Middle East as well as the Europe.

6:53 You know, I was um at the uh

6:55 French ambassador's residence for a White House correspondence

6:58 weekend and I caught up with the Irish

7:00 ambassador who pointed out to me that, you know,

7:03 we think we talk about some countries in Asia,

7:06 we talk about Europe and how they're impacted by the straight of Hermus,

7:09 but we really talk about Africa and how they may be actually months

7:13 away from a famine because of this because they need access to ura,

7:18 ammonia so that they can plant um so that they

7:22 can have seeds So they can actually have crops.

7:24 I mean the the down cycle like the down uh cycle effects from all

7:30 this are are really cataclysmic when you

7:33 actually think about that entire you know continent.

7:39 Listen, no question.

7:40 I think there's 53 countries in Africa.

7:43 There are some that are benefiting like this because

7:46 they're oil uh oil exporters such as Nigeria.

7:50 But for the most part, yes,

7:52 they're third world country and they're being greatly impacted.

7:55 I also I'm not making comparison of of US verse Africa.

7:59 So I want your viewers to know

8:01 this is not Robert making some dumbass comparison.

8:04 But if you look at what's going in Wisconsin and Michigan,

8:08 diesel fuel is at an all-time high.

8:11 All-time high.

8:12 Including when we were peaking in gas, including in the 70s.

8:16 All-time high.

8:17 And if you don't think that impacts truckers and farmers in the rural areas,

8:22 then we're kidding ourselves.

8:23 Which is why, in my opinion, this impass does not work.

8:28 We have gas right now at 455.

8:31 People think it's going to go to north of five bucks in the summer.

8:34 Like these things just don't work for this president,

8:37 especially as we get into the midterms.

8:39 I paid more than $5 a gallon for gas this weekend.

8:42 It was pretty brutal.

8:43 Um it's it's pretty painful to fill up a tiny Mini Cooper uh

8:49 when you realize you're paying what would have been the price of an SUV.

8:53 It's kind of crazy.

8:54 And I think it's a reminder that like this is a huge econom this is a huge

8:59 political liability for President Trump who by the way

9:02 according to a WPO ABC News poll,

9:06 that's Washington Post ABC News poll published over the weekend,

9:09 he has a 62% disapproval rating.

9:13 That is the highest he has ever had in both terms combined.

9:18 And get this, 72% of poll participants

9:21 disapproved of how he was handling inflation.

9:24 That is a 7point increase from two months ago.

9:29 Pretty brutal, especially when President Trump was essentially

9:32 elected to improve economic conditions, cost of living.

9:37 I mean, that was what everyone thought that he was

9:39 stronger on the economy and immigration um than Kla Harris.

9:44 Yeah.

9:44 I I would say unlike a lot of Democrats,

9:47 I'm willing to sit down almost across from anyone.

9:50 You know, I know that that's become a big thing.

9:52 And and I had lunch with Steve Bannon a few years back.

9:56 The one thing he said to me is the most

9:58 important poll is are we in the right or wrong direction.

10:03 So this p poll that you just talked about by ABC and and WAPO and Ipsos,

10:09 you know, just kind of is front and center.

10:11 But it doesn't surprise me because you and I have

10:14 talked about the past Tara about the K-shaped economy, you know,

10:18 where we have the halves and have not something like the top

10:22 1% have 90 plus percent of the wealth in the country.

10:26 But what's really rearing its ugly head is

10:29 saving rates is at the lowest in three years.

10:32 So, if people think affordability is not front and center, they're insane.

10:37 I know the president has made that comment.

10:39 And I think it's just crazy.

10:41 It's like just gaslighting the American public because everyone

10:45 is dipping into their savings like they've never done before.

10:49 Yeah.

10:49 I mean, he actually called affordability uh Democratic That Yeah.

10:56 pretty cutting.

10:57 I I I think I mean Tim Scott the other day I

11:00 think it was to Maria Baromo said gas prices are going down.

11:05 I don't even I mean I I don't even know how we even

11:10 I mean that must be like front and center for the Onion or SNL.

11:14 I mean it's just ridiculous, you know,

11:16 of what people are saying and and I think it's shameful.

11:20 And you know, gas prices have actually increased

11:23 30 cents in the past month by 30 cents

11:26 and they were already ridiculously high at the top

11:28 of the um at the start of the month.

11:30 So, and you know, as you mentioned to me before this show

11:35 that the debt is higher than it's been since what was it?

11:40 You had a ratio.

11:41 So, I I like to jab my friends who all

11:44 tell me they're fiscal hawks and these fiscal conservatives still live,

11:48 but this is the first time since World War II that debt

11:54 is higher than GDP in the US since World War II.

11:58 So, yes, it made sense in World War II.

12:01 It doesn't make sense today.

12:03 So, that just tells you between and this is both sides,

12:06 you know, I don't I'm not here to have Trump derangement syndrome.

12:10 Both sides have been spending an insane amount of money over the last

12:14 few decades and it's crept up and we're doing nothing about it.

12:18 You know, they used to have this thing called payfors.

12:21 Okay.

12:21 You want to increase the budget, go pay for it.

12:24 They don't do that anymore.

12:26 Yeah.

12:26 No.

12:26 And it's true.

12:27 And and honestly, the Democratic party has really done little

12:30 to prove that they are better at handling the economy.

12:33 A new yuggov economist poll shows

12:36 that a generic congressional Democrat is still only

12:40 marginally more popular than a congressional Republican

12:44 um with an overall favorability rating of -21.

12:48 That is that means that we might not see this very enthusiastic blue wave.

12:53 I think more likely people just coming out to vote against President

12:57 Trump rather than for a party because I haven't really heard much.

13:02 I mean, I haven't really heard a lot of ideas out of the Democratic party.

13:04 I haven't even really heard a great offensive when they could

13:08 be playing that game right now when the Republicans are low.

13:12 Uh, I don't see the

13:15 That's interesting you say that because last week I went on TV and I said,

13:20 you know, publicly on Fox that I support Kevin Walsh as our next Fed chair

13:26 and I don't think he got any Democratic votes uh, you know, in that committee.

13:31 And my view was I've I knew Kevin when

13:34 he was uh during the Lehman crisis where I

13:37 was down there and he was part of the uh he was a part of the Fed back then.

13:42 and he had an active role working with banks and he

13:46 is a sharp guy and he's really smart and I think

13:50 of all the candidates that President Trump was thinking of choosing

13:53 he would be the best and so I the idea that none

13:57 of the Democrats are voting for Kevin Walsh who's experienced

14:01 and smart and by the way his background is he's somewhat hawkish

14:07 and the other thing I would tell your viewers is you

14:09 need a majority of the votes to raise or lower rates.

14:12 So, it's not like Kevin can say, you know,

14:14 I know he was getting hit by people, oh, he's going to be a Trump puppet.

14:17 He's going to be a Trump puppet, but he has one vote.

14:20 And so, this idea that he can magically lower lower rates just doesn't exist.

14:26 And I think actually in this inflationary environment,

14:29 they probably won't lower rates.

14:31 And, you know, so I was against that before year end.

14:35 I thought we should have lower rates.

14:36 But now with the war, you know, I think we're a bit of kind of at this impass.

14:41 So you don't think it will be a more hawkish Fed with Worsh at the top of it?

14:45 I think it would have been,

14:46 but I think when I think right now in in my opinion long term,

14:51 I think the job market is going to be uh hit our country more than inflation.

14:58 Uh inflation was coming down at a nice pace, you know.

15:02 Um, listen, we don't really know how to judge what I'm,

15:05 you know, what I would call, you know,

15:07 I'm not brilliant here, other people were calling it as well,

15:09 but we kind of now are in this AI economy.

15:12 GDP just came out recently at 2% and the entire really, you know,

15:18 flex to it was capex and business spending and it was all around AI,

15:24 whether it was technology or data centers or infrastructure or cooling.

15:29 And so, you know, I think in this a AI economy,

15:33 I think it was last night, Bernie Sanders,

15:35 I was reading had this symposium where he had people

15:38 from China and people from the US talking about it.

15:41 And if the two bookends of that speech was incredibly

15:46 exciting and incredibly scary and it has to be governed,

15:50 but if you talk if you listen to it,

15:52 it's clear that the impact of jobs, you know,

15:56 long term are going to be scary as And one thing

16:00 you know as someone who runs a business you know I

16:04 have employees and I know other people are saying this so

16:06 this isn't new to everyone but immed for every employee I

16:10 have I pay a payroll tax but if I all

16:13 of a sudden buy you know new machinery or new computers or new

16:17 equipment I actually can write that down off of off

16:20 of depreciation and so actually I get a tax credit for it.

16:23 So if you're thinking about productivity gains,

16:26 you know, you know, using human capital versus using,

16:30 you know, what I would call capex, people are going to go to the capex side.

16:37 Interesting.

16:37 Okay.

16:37 I do want to get back to some of the politics going on right now.

16:41 Um, you know, we've talked about the economy

16:43 and like who's actually paying for this gamble

16:46 and the straight up more moves and it seems like it's all of us, right?

16:49 Um but you know and it's and it has Republicans freaking out.

16:53 I mean I was talking to some members um just a few weeks

16:57 ago and they were in a total state of panic about the economy.

17:01 Trump is one of the biggest drivers

17:03 for voters to come out in elections for Republicans.

17:06 Um clearly they aren't not happy and it's really independents.

17:11 Um it's right-leaning independents who are mostly unhappy

17:14 with him and it's those margins that really decide elections.

17:17 But another thing that, you know,

17:19 Republicans mentioned is that they don't think it'll

17:22 be this sort of bloodbath uh blue wave.

17:26 You could say that would be um because of gerrymandering and redistricting

17:32 and the maps have been so carved up already that they're pretty

17:38 much set in stone and and we're not going to see

17:41 like 20 30 seats shifting from one party to the next.

17:45 You had the voting rights act um that overturned well

17:50 not completely but you know various parts of it last week.

17:53 Ronda Santis in Florida is trying to redo the maps

17:57 um to hand over a number of seats to Republicans.

18:00 Um in Virginia the maps were re redistricted to favor Democrats but now

18:06 the Supreme Court in that state is is uh holding that up for a while.

18:10 So I think you know this might even though Americans may be feeling

18:14 a lot of pain and they may be going out to vote against President Trump,

18:17 we might not see the kind of political

18:20 movement that some may be expecting like the whiplash.

18:25 I would probably say the overunder is 20 seats still.

18:32 Okay.

18:31 But I think you're spot on, Tara.

18:33 Right.

18:33 We don't know what Alabama's going to do.

18:35 Although we kind of think we know what they're going to do.

18:38 Louisiana, Mississippi, you know, so all the southern states.

18:42 I mean, I think I saw a thing the other day there's like 40%, you know,

18:46 African-Americans in Mississippi and maybe they'll get

18:49 one of the four seats, you know,

18:52 and so we know that Jerry Manning is going to impact the midterms.

18:57 I would say the the the question is, you know,

19:00 everyone's being hurt and this idea that, you know,

19:05 Republicans are sticky voters and Democratic sticky voters,

19:09 I'm not so sure that's as true right now.

19:11 I don't I'm not sure, you know, look at what's happening with, you know,

19:16 people like Marjorie Taylor Green or Tucker Carlson

19:18 or these influencers who are going the other way.

19:21 Can they impact the vote?

19:22 So, you know, I'm just not sure um whether whether this will be,

19:28 you know, kind of a wave election or not.

19:30 But I would agree with you.

19:32 It doesn't feel that way today.

19:34 Yeah, it doesn't feel that way.

19:35 But I certainly and and six months is a long time in politics forever.

19:40 Forever.

19:42 Could you could you see the economy turning around in the next six months?

19:46 Um, I think it's hard to really think that inflation's going to come down

19:56 on healthc care and food prices and gasoline

20:01 fast enough where people won't feel the pain.

20:05 You know, certainly President Trump, you know,

20:07 these algorithms kind of shoot out, you know,

20:09 what I would say fake news and fake information,

20:13 but I think the pocketbook, you know, kind of speaks for itself.

20:17 And, you know, my opinion, wolves have gas over four bucks,

20:23 you know, by the end of the summer.

20:27 I think inflation will stay high.

20:29 I'd probably say I'm a little more nervous of, you know, stagflation,

20:34 you know, kind of rearing its head right now if this war continues.

20:40 The the the one saving grace is, you know, the amount of money being spent,

20:47 you know, by these big companies on capex is insane.

20:51 So, the question is, and we'll have a I think Friday unemployment number.

20:55 The question is how much is it impacting unemployment?

20:58 We just don't know yet.

20:59 The AI, the push for AI.

21:03 Yeah.

21:03 Um, it is a scary thing and I think it terrifies a lot of people,

21:06 especially younger people coming into the workforce.

21:09 Uh, because a lot of those admin jobs,

21:12 kind of assistant type jobs can be taken by AI.

21:15 But I think you have to train those young people how to use

21:17 AI so that they can work at a higher critical thinking level.

21:22 But, you know, it's it's a hard thing to do, right?

21:25 Yeah.

21:25 I mean, I was reading the other day, you know,

21:28 legal jobs are being lost because people are using it.

21:31 I read today that, you know, in banking,

21:33 they're going to start using, you know, Claude.

21:36 So, it's starting to impact a lot of what I would call middle middle tier jobs.

21:43 And, you know, just going back to politics because I think you were spot on.

21:47 Although I'm a staunch Democrat,

21:49 I think the Democratic party has to have a better economic message

21:54 than they have.

21:55 Uh it can't be about Trump 24/7, you know,

22:00 and right now the populist movement, you know,

22:03 and I would consider myself more of a centrist,

22:05 but the populist movement with Bernie and AOC and, you know, they just Yeah.

22:11 Zoron, they just have a better message right now.

22:15 you know, Zoron, I would say, you know,

22:17 he has to show he can execute his message.

22:19 I would say AOC and Bernie have the benefit of being um you

22:24 know federal so they can you know you know and they can really

22:28 go after Trump and his administration more on healthc care the impact of AI

22:33 whereas you know Zoron doesn't have the same number of tools he has

22:36 to balance a budget you know being you know in the city there

22:40 New York which is really tough I don't know where you grow the revenues

22:44 and you just can't do it with taxes it's just not going

22:46 to be approved but I do think that the economic agenda has to be,

22:51 you know, much more um much more clear for the Democrats

22:55 for them to ever have a chance of this wave election.

22:58 Yeah, that's right.

22:59 I mean, there's a big split in the party

23:01 with the feeling of essentially Democratic socialists and Democrats, right?

23:05 Um and or Democratic populists, as you might call them,

23:09 and and more centrist kind of Bill Clinton type Democrats.

23:13 Um, but the leadership of the party,

23:17 there's a lot of anger right now in leadership

23:20 and anyone who seems to be endorsed by establishment,

23:23 they they have this like stink on them.

23:26 Anyone who's getting money from the DC

23:29 or um the Democratic Senatorial Committee,

23:32 you know, anything from Schumer's packs, uh, DNC, DNC is suffering.

23:37 I mean, RNC has seven times more money

23:40 in their war chest than the DNC right now.

23:43 and the leadership Ken Martin, he's getting grilled.

23:46 I mean, people were expecting an autopsy report.

23:50 It was a pretty brutal shellacking in this last election.

23:53 You lose all seven swing states and there hasn't been an autopsy report.

24:00 There's

24:00 Well, I I I'm going to, you know, I I don't mean to put salt in the wound,

24:05 but that autopsy report was done and paid for by donors.

24:10 So, in my opinion, so in my opinion, they should have made it public.

24:16 Um, I heard Ken had a a tough interview

24:19 with John Favro recently and John really went after him saying,

24:24 you know, it's owned by the people who paid for it.

24:28 You should be showing it.

24:29 But I agree with you.

24:30 I think, you know, you've done some recent podcasts,

24:34 you know, on the Michigan race, on what's happening in Maine and, you know,

24:38 so you've been right at the cutting edge on all of all of this.

24:42 You know, it's clear Janet Mills, you know, opted out last week.

24:45 That was a Schumer person.

24:47 You know, he's leaned in, it feels like, with Haley Stevens in Michigan.

24:51 In my opinion, I think the one thing we learned with Biden,

24:55 let the primaries play out.

24:57 You know, let's have a real primary fight.

25:00 We know we're going to have one, you know, this presidential election.

25:03 There'll probably be 20 people running, but I think we are we have a flawed

25:07 approach by thinking Schumer should dictate what happens in Maine, right?

25:11 He's personally very unpopular.

25:13 Um, and and the voters have have reflected that, but as a I'm

25:19 guessing that you've been a donor to the DNC before, correct?

25:22 I've been a donor to the DSC, the DNC,

25:26 although I'm I've been a huge donor to the Democratic Party,

25:30 but I I don't think I given a scent in 2025,

25:37 which is the first year probably in 20 years I haven't given.

25:40 Now, I will be giving in 26, you know, to congressional races and Senate races,

25:47 but I was so turned off by how we blew so much money.

25:52 so much money in 2024.

25:55 You know, I felt like they were not a good, you know, steward of my money.

26:00 Not that it's a lot.

26:01 I just think that, you know, we didn't do well in a lot of races.

26:06 What was it in particular that really bothered

26:08 you or what kind of spends did you see?

26:11 Well, I I think one of the biggest things and I don't blame this on Kamla,

26:15 but the idea that we spent,

26:17 you know, a billion and a half plus dollars and we didn't really,

26:21 in my opinion, have a great gauge of the younger voters.

26:25 I mean, we lost a lot of our core

26:27 voting base um because we were just out of touch.

26:31 And I think that, you know,

26:33 when you spend that amount of money and you're not getting

26:36 to your core voters and and we lost some Senate races,

26:39 I think we could have won, too.

26:43 Yeah.

26:42 Now, I will tell you on the flip side,

26:45 I would have given us a 10 to 15% chance to flip the Senate.

26:50 Today, we have a 40% chance to flip the Senate.

26:52 It's still not 50%.

26:55 But Alaska's in play.

26:56 You could argue Texas is in play.

26:59 You know, Maine's in play.

27:00 I'm not saying we're going to win those, but there's now it was three in play.

27:05 Now there's probably eight in play is all I'm saying.

27:08 So I'm using the word in play.

27:10 Party or is that because of the candidates on both sides?

27:13 Because Republicans have fielded some pretty weak candidates.

27:17 And I think it's both.

27:19 I think I think the Democrats in a lot of ways

27:22 the it's the anti-establishment candidates that might be giving them a chance.

27:26 Yeah.

27:26 Listen, I think Taler Rico, you know, is a seems to be a good candidate.

27:31 I certainly have my disagreements with Graham Plat

27:33 Platner whether he can beat, you know, Collins.

27:36 I don't know.

27:37 But Sherid Brown has a good chance.

27:39 It looks like Osaf will win Virginia.

27:41 Roy Cooper will win North Carolina.

27:44 You know, I think Chris Papus could, you know, possibly win New Hampshire.

27:48 My only point is is Mary Potta and um Alaska.

27:52 There's just a lot more possibilities.

27:55 Before we were hoping, you know, maybe to hold three seats.

27:59 Now we're questioning whether we can, you know, do more than that.

28:02 So, you know, I think it's part candidates and part, you know,

28:06 the, you know, Trump isn't, you know, helping his party right now.

28:11 I I I do enjoy always reading the stories uh in Politico

28:15 and various other places like will John Federman become a Republican?

28:20 Will he switch sides?

28:21 And I think he likes just dangling it out there.

28:25 I mean, he obviously denied it, but just keeping that rumor going,

28:28 gives him a little bit more power and sort of keeps him in in the game

28:33 in a way and and gives him some more power in in in uh in the Congress.

28:39 But yeah, I always I find those stories to be amusing.

28:42 I agree.

28:43 They're amusing.

28:43 Federman votes 90% with Democrats and some of the things

28:47 he just disagrees with the Democratic party and that's fine.

28:50 Just like Susan Collins votes 90% with Trump.

28:54 So we should not make like you know we've really lost the center.

28:58 Everyone goes to their corner on almost every tough vote.

29:02 Yeah, that's true.

29:03 Um have you heard anything about an autopsy report?

29:07 Like have you seen it?

29:08 Has anyone seen it?

29:09 Has have you heard anything about this autopsy report?

29:12 Have you seen it?

29:12 Has anyone seen it?

29:14 Nope.

29:14 I have met with Ken Martin.

29:16 I speak to the DNC.

29:18 I have, you know, I think what you're

29:20 saying is we're not looking to go backwards.

29:23 We're going to take a few of our lessons

29:24 learned and we're going to look to move forward.

29:26 We don't want to go backwards and debate it.

29:29 You know, that's kind of what I've heard him say.

29:31 Um, but I have not seen it.

29:34 Okay.

29:34 Um, what are your other donor friends saying right now?

29:37 I mean, what's what's why the struggle?

29:41 You know, I I actually think they feel pretty good about the House.

29:45 And I think they feel like the Senate's in play.

29:49 And I think with the presidency, I think all of us,

29:52 we're probably going to give money to five people instead of one.

29:56 There's going to be 15 to 20 people running.

29:59 I will have at least 10 friends running.

30:03 Um, you know, and so I I think you're gonna want to have

30:08 a real primary and kind of let it play out a little.

30:11 What are you thinking about California right now?

30:13 It's just all thrown up in the air with the Swallwell scandal,

30:16 which seems to be getting seedier by the day,

30:19 but what what did how are Democrats feeling?

30:22 I think um listen when you have an open primary in California

30:29 and you have I think in the top five two Republicans right now

30:34 and for the most part you have like six or eight Democrats all between

30:40 five and 15% and someone told me there's like over a hundred people running.

30:47 You know, I'm a little nervous,

30:48 but I'm hoping that it's at least a Democrat versus a Republican,

30:51 then I think a Democrat will win.

30:54 But there's a possibility that there's two Republicans running.

30:56 And so, you know, I think it could be a real show to use your French earlier on.

31:01 But, um, but I'm hoping that, you know,

31:05 I'm hoping that it's, you know, Styer against Hilton or, you know,

31:09 two Dems, but certainly, you know, as a Dem,

31:12 I'm not hoping that we that there's a flip in California.

31:15 And it doesn't I don't think there will be.

31:19 Okay.

31:19 I think actually Trump backing Hilton was a negative for Hilton.

31:26 Interesting.

31:25 Well, only time will tell.

31:28 Robert, thank you for joining in the show.

31:30 Thanks for having me on, Tara.

31:32 Love being on.

31:33 Yeah, of course.

31:34 We love having you.

31:35 You're our economic guru and political insider.

31:40 Thank you.

31:41 I don't know if I like the second one, but I'm gonna take the first one.

31:44 Okay, we'll take it.

31:46 We like that.

31:47 Politically right now, you kind of I mean, I've gotta wash myself.

31:51 It's like feels so ugly out there.

31:53 It's true.

31:54 It is.

31:55 I don't know.

31:55 Like I said, I don't know how you do it

31:57 because the news is just coming at everyone so fast.

32:01 It's just insane.

32:03 I know.

32:03 It's hard to actually like It's hard to actually process it.

32:07 But that's the point, right?

32:08 The diluge.

32:09 I think you said to me this morning if I I love

32:13 the idea that you don't really want to I actually hate the idea,

32:16 but I love the idea that you don't want to really prepare,

32:19 you know, topics because the news is already changing.

32:22 And I I love that you said, Robert, if we prepared yesterday,

32:25 today it would have been different because of Project Freedom.

32:27 And you're so right that we have to be at the moment.

32:30 And I think that's what makes you special.

32:32 A thank you.

32:33 I appreciate that.

32:34 And I appreciate I like to be prepared that way.

32:37 Yeah.

32:37 No, and I appreciate that you're always prepared for whatever happens.

32:41 So, this is it's all good.

32:43 We'll we'll make this we'll we'll work through the news

32:45 waves as surf surf these tsunamis as they come.

32:50 Yeah.

32:50 Thank you to all of you though as always.

32:53 Hit that subscribe button if this is your first time on the page.

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33:04 And I appreciate all of you.

33:05 and send in your questions in advance

33:07 and we'll do another show probably next week.

33:10 So, you can start messaging me now about what you want to talk about.

33:14 But I can't promise you that I won't have to talk

33:16 about the craziest news of the day at the top.

33:18 So, thanks so much.

33:19 Bye.

33:20 Thank you.

33:20 Bye.

33:20 Bye.