WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.419 Welcome to the deep dive. We take a stack of 00:00:02.419 --> 00:00:05.459 your sources and basically pull out the most 00:00:05.459 --> 00:00:08.619 important nuggets of knowledge and insight. Right. 00:00:08.679 --> 00:00:10.980 Our mission today is really to cut through all 00:00:10.980 --> 00:00:13.480 the noise from recent headlines, give you that 00:00:13.480 --> 00:00:15.939 shortcut to being truly well informed. And we've 00:00:15.939 --> 00:00:18.559 got a really fascinating set of topics to explore 00:00:18.559 --> 00:00:22.460 today. Oh, yeah. High stakes legal battles with 00:00:22.460 --> 00:00:24.660 prominent figures. Then there's the whole volatile 00:00:24.660 --> 00:00:27.620 world of cryptocurrency and the new government 00:00:27.620 --> 00:00:30.039 oversight that's coming in. Plus the inner workings 00:00:30.039 --> 00:00:32.539 of political strategy, some surprising legislative 00:00:32.539 --> 00:00:34.859 twists. Yeah, you're definitely in for some surprising 00:00:34.859 --> 00:00:37.659 facts and probably plenty of those aha moments. 00:00:38.100 --> 00:00:40.859 We'll be looking at, well, everything really. 00:00:41.100 --> 00:00:44.119 Court documents, news analyses. Legislative acts, 00:00:44.539 --> 00:00:46.539 campaign strategies. So let's dive deep into 00:00:46.539 --> 00:00:48.200 these sources and see what really stands out. 00:00:48.380 --> 00:00:50.920 OK, let's do it. OK, let's unpack this first 00:00:50.920 --> 00:00:54.320 bit. Our first set of sources pulls back the 00:00:54.320 --> 00:00:57.539 curtain. on the, well, the ever -unsolding story 00:00:57.539 --> 00:01:00.060 around Jeffrey Epstein. Right. And specifically 00:01:00.060 --> 00:01:02.700 how Donald Trump is now tangled up in this huge 00:01:02.700 --> 00:01:05.640 libel lawsuit. A $10 billion lawsuit, right? 00:01:06.239 --> 00:01:08.019 Against the Wall Street Journal and Rupert Murdoch. 00:01:08.239 --> 00:01:11.859 Exactly. And the core of it is this this blockbuster 00:01:11.859 --> 00:01:15.319 story. It claimed Trump sent Epstein a 50th birthday 00:01:15.319 --> 00:01:18.349 letter. But that really weird line, happy birthday 00:01:18.349 --> 00:01:20.549 and may every day be another wonderful secret. 00:01:20.790 --> 00:01:23.450 Yeah, and apparently alongside a sketch of a 00:01:23.450 --> 00:01:26.030 naked woman with Trump's signature. And Trump's 00:01:26.030 --> 00:01:27.730 reaction was pretty quick. I never wrote a picture 00:01:27.730 --> 00:01:31.209 in my life, which, OK, is literally true. Right. 00:01:31.269 --> 00:01:33.109 People draw pictures. They don't write them. 00:01:33.109 --> 00:01:36.150 But sources do confirm Trump does sketch sometimes. 00:01:36.349 --> 00:01:40.250 What's the strategic angle here? Why, Sue? Is 00:01:40.250 --> 00:01:43.250 it like a genuine attempt to? Clear his name. 00:01:43.430 --> 00:01:45.310 Well, that's the fascinating question, isn't 00:01:45.310 --> 00:01:48.530 it? Or is it more of a shakedown, trying to get 00:01:48.530 --> 00:01:51.430 Murdoch to apologize, maybe? Or ban Extean stories 00:01:51.430 --> 00:01:54.109 across his media empire. Maybe pay out, say, 00:01:54.450 --> 00:01:56.890 $50 million or something. Could be. But here's 00:01:56.890 --> 00:01:59.370 where it gets really interesting. What if Murdoch 00:01:59.370 --> 00:02:01.569 fights back? Defends the journal's reporting. 00:02:01.730 --> 00:02:03.829 Exactly. Because a key defense against libel 00:02:03.829 --> 00:02:07.030 is proving the story is true. Which could mean... 00:02:06.680 --> 00:02:09.120 Murdoch's lawyers subpoenaing people who knew 00:02:09.120 --> 00:02:12.159 Epstein back then around his 50th birthday. Get 00:02:12.159 --> 00:02:15.000 sworn testimony. Bring in handwriting experts 00:02:15.000 --> 00:02:17.560 to look at that signature from 2003. And they 00:02:17.560 --> 00:02:19.159 might even try to call Ghislaine Maxwell ready. 00:02:19.500 --> 00:02:21.219 Ask her what she knows about Trump and Epstein. 00:02:21.520 --> 00:02:23.539 Absolutely. And connecting this to the bigger 00:02:23.539 --> 00:02:26.840 picture, that discovery process before trial. 00:02:26.939 --> 00:02:29.599 Oh, yeah. It could dig up all sorts of information. 00:02:29.780 --> 00:02:31.870 Trump would much rather keep quiet. It's like 00:02:31.870 --> 00:02:34.009 the Streisand effect, but potentially massive. 00:02:34.449 --> 00:02:36.750 Exactly. Streisand effect on steroids, as the 00:02:36.750 --> 00:02:39.389 source puts it. And apparently Trump doesn't 00:02:39.389 --> 00:02:42.270 have much leverage over Murdoch right now. No 00:02:42.270 --> 00:02:44.650 big mergers pending or anything. So it's a real 00:02:44.650 --> 00:02:47.729 game of chicken in what used to be a pretty symbiotic 00:02:47.729 --> 00:02:50.490 relationship. You got it. And it seems unlikely 00:02:50.490 --> 00:02:53.229 this lawsuit will really distract from the other 00:02:53.229 --> 00:02:56.090 big issue. The fact that the full Epstein files 00:02:56.090 --> 00:02:59.210 still haven't been released. Precisely. And speaking 00:02:59.210 --> 00:03:02.189 of managing information, There's another layer 00:03:02.189 --> 00:03:05.129 here. Senator Dick Durbin, the Democrat from 00:03:05.129 --> 00:03:07.530 Illinois, he's reported that Attorney General 00:03:07.530 --> 00:03:11.430 Pam Bondi ordered, like, 1 ,000 FBI personnel. 00:03:11.629 --> 00:03:15.430 A thousand? Wow. Yeah. To comb through 100 ,000 00:03:15.430 --> 00:03:18.110 Epstein -related documents, 24 -hour shifts, 00:03:18.669 --> 00:03:21.349 specifically flagging any mention of Trump. So 00:03:21.349 --> 00:03:23.270 the big question that raises is, you know, is 00:03:23.270 --> 00:03:25.250 this prep work? Are they getting ready to release 00:03:25.250 --> 00:03:27.770 tens of thousands of documents? But... with all 00:03:27.770 --> 00:03:30.229 the Trump mentions carefully, surgically removed. 00:03:30.430 --> 00:03:32.889 And Durbin's source, the thinking goes, might 00:03:32.889 --> 00:03:34.750 be one of those agents assigned to the task. 00:03:34.830 --> 00:03:36.949 Right. Maybe someone who felt they couldn't go 00:03:36.949 --> 00:03:39.770 to a reporter because of, well, pressure from 00:03:39.770 --> 00:03:42.189 the top. And Durbin's also asking questions about 00:03:42.189 --> 00:03:45.789 that that suspicious one minute gap in Epstein's 00:03:45.789 --> 00:03:47.830 prison cell video. The surveillance footage. 00:03:48.050 --> 00:03:50.150 Yeah. The metadata apparently indicates it was 00:03:50.150 --> 00:03:52.469 edited with Adobe Premiere Pro. Meaning it's 00:03:52.469 --> 00:03:55.360 a composite. Not the raw, original footage. Which 00:03:55.360 --> 00:03:57.460 is obviously concerning. Then we have insights 00:03:57.460 --> 00:03:59.960 from a Republican attorney, Chris Truax. He wrote 00:03:59.960 --> 00:04:02.539 a column mentioning the FBI raid on Epstein's 00:04:02.539 --> 00:04:05.259 New York mansion. They seized a ton of material. 00:04:05.539 --> 00:04:08.400 Including CDs. Probably DVDs, actually. Labeled 00:04:08.400 --> 00:04:10.939 with names. Men's names, young women's names. 00:04:11.300 --> 00:04:13.240 Which really suggests Epstein might have been 00:04:13.240 --> 00:04:16.339 secretly recording powerful men. Possibly with 00:04:16.339 --> 00:04:18.600 underage women. Like an insurance policy, the 00:04:18.600 --> 00:04:20.839 source calls it. To stop them turning on him. 00:04:20.939 --> 00:04:24.420 And the court filing from SDNY back in July 2019, 00:04:24.860 --> 00:04:27.920 when they argued against bail for Epstein, it 00:04:27.920 --> 00:04:29.839 backs this up. What did it say specifically? 00:04:30.019 --> 00:04:34.000 It mentioned a vast trove of lewd photographs 00:04:34.000 --> 00:04:37.439 of young -looking women or girls. Hundreds, maybe 00:04:37.439 --> 00:04:40.560 thousands, of sexually suggestive photos. Some 00:04:40.560 --> 00:04:43.620 looked underage. And in a locked safe. They found 00:04:43.620 --> 00:04:47.259 CDs labeled things like Young Name Plus Name, 00:04:47.699 --> 00:04:50.920 Miss Nudes 1, and Girl Picks Nude. Really explicit 00:04:50.920 --> 00:04:53.220 labels. So, thinking about the libel suit again, 00:04:53.720 --> 00:04:56.060 if it goes forward, Murdoch's lawyers would definitely 00:04:56.060 --> 00:04:57.920 want those CDs, wouldn't they? Most certainly. 00:04:58.060 --> 00:05:00.160 They'd subpoena them. But what if the AG's office 00:05:00.160 --> 00:05:02.560 says, oops, sorry, can't find them? That's a 00:05:02.560 --> 00:05:04.259 scenario the source has raised. It could lead 00:05:04.259 --> 00:05:06.720 to subpoenas for the FBI agents involved in the 00:05:06.720 --> 00:05:09.019 raid itself. And the suggestion is Trump would 00:05:09.019 --> 00:05:12.459 do, quote, everything humanly possible to make 00:05:12.459 --> 00:05:15.860 sure those CDs disappear. Destroyed. It's a pretty 00:05:15.860 --> 00:05:18.740 explosive possibility. And finally, On this, 00:05:18.860 --> 00:05:21.459 let's just quickly touch on the actual documented 00:05:21.459 --> 00:05:23.959 relationship between Trump and Epstein. The New 00:05:23.959 --> 00:05:27.040 York Times detailed their, what, 15 -year friendship. 00:05:27.199 --> 00:05:30.259 Yeah, started around 1990 in Palm Beach, both 00:05:30.259 --> 00:05:34.060 described as outer borough New Yorkers trying 00:05:34.060 --> 00:05:36.800 to make it big. And sources say they both very 00:05:36.800 --> 00:05:38.959 much enjoy the company of women, especially young 00:05:38.959 --> 00:05:41.480 women. There are accounts of them partying together, 00:05:41.620 --> 00:05:44.339 dancing with young women, at a calendar girl 00:05:44.339 --> 00:05:46.620 competition where they were supposedly the only 00:05:46.620 --> 00:05:49.850 guys there. even stories involving Buffalo Bill's 00:05:49.850 --> 00:05:53.029 cheerleaders and lawsuits. One settled out of 00:05:53.029 --> 00:05:56.129 court alleging Trump kissed, fondled, crawled 00:05:56.129 --> 00:05:58.350 into a woman's bed. Another claimed he groped 00:05:58.350 --> 00:06:00.889 her like an octopus, quote unquote, in his office 00:06:00.889 --> 00:06:03.129 after Epstein brought her there. They flew together 00:06:03.129 --> 00:06:04.930 a lot, too, right? Between Manhattan and Palm 00:06:04.930 --> 00:06:07.550 Beach on Epstein's jet. Yep. Court records show 00:06:07.550 --> 00:06:09.990 at least seven trips on Epstein's private Boeing 00:06:09.990 --> 00:06:13.389 727. and that famous photo at the Victoria's 00:06:13.389 --> 00:06:15.750 Secret Party in 97. And that quote from Trump 00:06:15.750 --> 00:06:18.250 himself in New York Magazine in 2002 is pretty 00:06:18.250 --> 00:06:21.370 telling. Oh, yeah. I've known Jeffrey for 15 00:06:21.370 --> 00:06:23.750 years. Terrific guy. He's a lot of fun to be 00:06:23.750 --> 00:06:26.829 with. And then the kicker. It is even said that 00:06:26.829 --> 00:06:29.490 he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and 00:06:29.490 --> 00:06:32.610 many of them are on the younger side. Wow. The 00:06:32.610 --> 00:06:35.149 friendship apparently ended in 2004 over a real 00:06:35.149 --> 00:06:38.089 estate deal. But the sources suggest Epstein 00:06:38.089 --> 00:06:42.279 had this unlimited supply of young women. often 00:06:42.279 --> 00:06:44.779 shared them with Trump. One woman quoted felt 00:06:44.779 --> 00:06:47.500 passed around like a platter of fruit, just awful. 00:06:47.800 --> 00:06:50.000 So yeah, lots of potential witnesses out there, 00:06:50.279 --> 00:06:53.019 which suggests Trump would use, as the source 00:06:53.019 --> 00:06:56.000 says, all his powers of intimidation to keep 00:06:56.000 --> 00:06:58.399 a lid on things. A very tangled web, indeed. 00:06:58.680 --> 00:07:01.180 OK, let's pivot. Moving from those legal battles 00:07:01.180 --> 00:07:04.879 to the complex world of economics and policy, 00:07:05.339 --> 00:07:07.759 specifically crypto. Right. Cryptocurrency. What 00:07:07.759 --> 00:07:10.000 does it all mean? The sources we looked at present 00:07:10.000 --> 00:07:12.610 a Pretty strong argument that fundamentally all 00:07:12.610 --> 00:07:15.649 crypto is basically a scam, a Ponzi scheme. It's 00:07:15.649 --> 00:07:17.750 the core argument. Yeah. The underlying idea 00:07:17.750 --> 00:07:20.149 is simple. You buy a crypto coin hoping more 00:07:20.149 --> 00:07:22.529 people want it later drives the price up. And 00:07:22.529 --> 00:07:25.310 the only real problem it solves, according to 00:07:25.310 --> 00:07:28.089 these sources, is untraceable payments, which 00:07:28.089 --> 00:07:31.269 is mostly valuable to, well, criminals. It doesn't 00:07:31.269 --> 00:07:33.449 really offer advantages over cash or credit cards 00:07:33.449 --> 00:07:35.769 for normal transactions and can actually be worse. 00:07:36.000 --> 00:07:38.660 Right. With transaction fees, gas fees. Exactly. 00:07:39.060 --> 00:07:41.579 Plus, unlike stocks or real estate, there's no 00:07:41.579 --> 00:07:44.899 direct return. No dividends. No rent. It's just 00:07:44.899 --> 00:07:47.879 pure speculation. No inherent value. Compare 00:07:47.879 --> 00:07:50.759 that to gold, you know. Actual commercial use 00:07:50.759 --> 00:07:53.360 is a 2 ,500 -year history as a store of value. 00:07:53.959 --> 00:07:56.839 Crypto is just different. And the volatility 00:07:56.839 --> 00:08:01.699 is insane. Bitcoin. $65 ,000 in late 2021, down 00:08:01.699 --> 00:08:06.040 to under $16 ,000 a year later. Now, almost $120 00:08:06.040 --> 00:08:08.620 ,000. It could genuinely be worthless tomorrow. 00:08:08.759 --> 00:08:11.180 Just vanish. So attempts to fix that led to stable 00:08:11.180 --> 00:08:13.620 coins. Pegged to something external. Right, trying 00:08:13.620 --> 00:08:15.319 to bring some stability. But even those aren't 00:08:15.319 --> 00:08:17.540 foolproof. They can get depegged. You betcha. 00:08:17.579 --> 00:08:20.480 Look at Tether. Fined $41 million for basically 00:08:20.480 --> 00:08:23.060 lying about its reserves between 2016 and 2018. 00:08:23.180 --> 00:08:24.660 They only had enough backing for their coins 00:08:24.660 --> 00:08:26.660 about a quarter of the time. Something like that. 00:08:26.800 --> 00:08:30.089 But the really dramatic one was Terra, May 2022. 00:08:30.389 --> 00:08:32.389 It was the third biggest crypto coin. And then 00:08:32.389 --> 00:08:35.750 five days, it went from one dollar to 13 cents. 00:08:36.210 --> 00:08:39.509 Within two weeks, its value dropped from 60 billion 00:08:39.509 --> 00:08:44.570 dollars to zero. 60 billion to zero. How? Its 00:08:44.570 --> 00:08:46.929 reserves were held in another crypto coin that 00:08:46.929 --> 00:08:49.809 crashed. It's like the 17th century Dutch tulip 00:08:49.809 --> 00:08:52.669 mania all over again. Wow. OK, so enter the scam 00:08:52.669 --> 00:08:55.120 master. as our sources put it, Donald Trump. 00:08:55.279 --> 00:08:58.279 Who, remember, called crypto a scam back in 2021. 00:08:58.500 --> 00:09:00.940 Right. But now he's enthusiastically signed this 00:09:00.940 --> 00:09:03.919 new law. The Genius Act sets guidelines for stablecoin 00:09:03.919 --> 00:09:06.980 trading. And it's probably hard to ignore the 00:09:06.980 --> 00:09:09.139 200 million dollars the crypto industry poured 00:09:09.139 --> 00:09:11.659 into political campaigns in 2024. 200 million. 00:09:11.679 --> 00:09:14.360 More than oil, tech or pharma combined. Yep. 00:09:14.490 --> 00:09:17.429 Big money talking. Plus, Trump's sons run World 00:09:17.429 --> 00:09:19.809 Liberty Financial, which issues a stablecoin. 00:09:20.070 --> 00:09:22.210 And he has his own Truman Poor coin now. OK, 00:09:22.230 --> 00:09:24.009 so let's look at the genius act itself. What 00:09:24.009 --> 00:09:26.360 does it actually do? Well, it sets rules. Who 00:09:26.360 --> 00:09:28.460 can issue stable coins? Who audits them? Who 00:09:28.460 --> 00:09:30.980 can take action against issuers? Rules about 00:09:30.980 --> 00:09:33.639 not mixing assets, mingling assets. Right. And 00:09:33.639 --> 00:09:35.299 it tells the National Institute of Standards 00:09:35.299 --> 00:09:38.019 and Technology, NIST, to set up standards for 00:09:38.019 --> 00:09:40.700 exchanging stable coins. And Section 11 is interesting. 00:09:41.019 --> 00:09:43.279 Tells the Treasury secretary to decide what can 00:09:43.279 --> 00:09:46.159 actually be in the reserve fund. Exactly. Because, 00:09:46.159 --> 00:09:49.000 you know, could someone just put their grandma's 00:09:49.000 --> 00:09:51.279 old painting in there and claim it's worth millions? 00:09:51.360 --> 00:09:53.960 Right. The senator who wrote the bill, Bill Haggerty. 00:09:54.169 --> 00:09:56.690 He has a finance background, right? Co -founded 00:09:56.690 --> 00:09:59.149 a private equity firm. So he understands this 00:09:59.149 --> 00:10:01.610 stuff. And the bill does briefly mention the 00:10:01.610 --> 00:10:04.370 potential insolvency of stable coins. So the 00:10:04.370 --> 00:10:07.950 expectation now is big banks, companies like 00:10:07.950 --> 00:10:10.889 Amazon, Walmart. They'll start issuing their 00:10:10.889 --> 00:10:14.110 own stablecoins. That seems to be the idea. Potentially 00:10:14.110 --> 00:10:16.870 thousands of competing coins flooding the market. 00:10:16.970 --> 00:10:19.250 Which means lots of smaller companies will probably 00:10:19.250 --> 00:10:22.149 fail. And if Tera and Tether are anything to 00:10:22.149 --> 00:10:24.610 go by, a lot of people holding those coins could 00:10:24.610 --> 00:10:27.230 lose everything as companies get, let's say, 00:10:27.490 --> 00:10:30.450 creative with what's backing them. Somali shellings. 00:10:30.690 --> 00:10:33.090 Guest tickets to dinner with Trump. The sources 00:10:33.090 --> 00:10:34.970 get a bit colorful there, but yeah, the risk 00:10:34.970 --> 00:10:37.590 is creative accounting with reserves. So what's 00:10:37.590 --> 00:10:40.299 the risk of a bigger collapse? Coins are held 00:10:40.299 --> 00:10:43.019 in wallets on exchanges, right? Right. And exchanges 00:10:43.019 --> 00:10:46.019 get hacked. All the time. Look at Bybit, the 00:10:46.019 --> 00:10:48.620 second biggest exchange, hacked for $1 .5 billion 00:10:48.620 --> 00:10:52.320 in February 2025. North Korea suspected. Even 00:10:52.320 --> 00:10:55.200 big tech like Microsoft gets breached. So it's 00:10:55.200 --> 00:10:57.419 definitely possible. And if a major exchange 00:10:57.419 --> 00:11:00.600 gets hit hard, it could trigger a bank run on 00:11:00.600 --> 00:11:03.000 stable coins. Millions trying to cash out at 00:11:03.000 --> 00:11:05.629 once. And the reserves might not cover it. especially 00:11:05.629 --> 00:11:07.389 if they're holding illiquid things like real 00:11:07.389 --> 00:11:09.690 estate. Exactly. And companies competing for 00:11:09.690 --> 00:11:14.169 business might use increasingly iffy assets in 00:11:14.169 --> 00:11:17.029 those reserves to look better, more risk. Plus 00:11:17.029 --> 00:11:19.110 there are other risks too, right? Software bugs. 00:11:19.529 --> 00:11:22.149 Oh yeah. Bugs in the crypto software itself. 00:11:22.690 --> 00:11:24.990 Flaws in the complex math behind blockchains. 00:11:25.389 --> 00:11:27.429 Even bad actors maintaining the blockchains. 00:11:27.830 --> 00:11:29.809 Any of those could cause catastrophic failure. 00:11:29.970 --> 00:11:32.389 So here's where the sources get really stark. 00:11:32.600 --> 00:11:35.259 Short term, the Genius Act probably boosts the 00:11:35.259 --> 00:11:37.980 crypto industry. Lots of money made. Seems likely. 00:11:38.240 --> 00:11:41.299 But the worry is, some unforeseen event triggers 00:11:41.299 --> 00:11:43.539 those bank runs. And it doesn't just crash crypto, 00:11:43.679 --> 00:11:45.580 it could potentially bring down the entire global 00:11:45.580 --> 00:11:47.919 financial system. That's the nightmare scenario 00:11:47.919 --> 00:11:51.159 the sources raise. A global depression, or worse, 00:11:51.960 --> 00:11:54.000 future historians might look back at this like 00:11:54.000 --> 00:11:56.399 they look back at... The Holly Smoot Tariff Act 00:11:56.399 --> 00:11:59.480 in 1930, which helped trigger the Great Depression. 00:11:59.639 --> 00:12:02.120 That's the parallel being drawn. It's a huge 00:12:02.120 --> 00:12:05.000 potential risk. And one really striking detail 00:12:05.000 --> 00:12:09.139 in the genius act. The exemptions. Right. It 00:12:09.139 --> 00:12:11.059 bans members of Congress and their families from 00:12:11.059 --> 00:12:13.919 issuing stable coins. But specifically exempts 00:12:13.919 --> 00:12:17.419 the president, his family, cabinet members, other 00:12:17.419 --> 00:12:19.860 high officials. And an analysis apparently shows 00:12:19.860 --> 00:12:22.519 20 percent of high level administration officials 00:12:22.519 --> 00:12:25.320 already own crypto. The potential for corruption 00:12:25.320 --> 00:12:29.629 seems. Vast. Absolutely. Take World Liberty Financial, 00:12:29.889 --> 00:12:33.190 run by Trump's sons. They issue the USD1 stablecoin. 00:12:33.230 --> 00:12:35.629 OK. Earlier this month, an Abu Dhabi investment 00:12:35.629 --> 00:12:38.730 firm used USD1 to make a $2 billion investment 00:12:38.730 --> 00:12:41.110 in the Binance crypto exchange. Putting World 00:12:41.110 --> 00:12:43.610 Liberty Financial in a position to profit significantly 00:12:43.610 --> 00:12:45.950 from that deal. Exactly. The source basically 00:12:45.950 --> 00:12:48.149 says the Constitution's emoluments clause, it's 00:12:48.149 --> 00:12:51.730 now officially dead. Wow. OK, let's shift gears 00:12:51.730 --> 00:12:55.169 again to federal employment and election strategies. 00:12:55.899 --> 00:12:58.740 First up, Trump is apparently back creating a 00:12:58.740 --> 00:13:02.320 new class of civil servants. Easier to fire ones. 00:13:02.679 --> 00:13:04.740 Yeah, he's wanted this for a while, right? The 00:13:04.740 --> 00:13:06.919 ability to fire civil servants he thinks are 00:13:06.919 --> 00:13:09.080 disloyal. The Pendleton Act makes that hard. 00:13:09.340 --> 00:13:12.240 You need malfeasance. Refusing an illegal order 00:13:12.240 --> 00:13:14.840 usually doesn't count. Right. Unlike political 00:13:14.840 --> 00:13:16.779 appointees who serve at the president's pleasure, 00:13:16.960 --> 00:13:19.139 they can be fired for pretty much anything. So 00:13:19.139 --> 00:13:21.620 back at the end of 2020, he created Schedule 00:13:21.620 --> 00:13:24.679 F for policymaking employees. Said they could 00:13:24.679 --> 00:13:27.320 be fired at will. And now he signed an executive 00:13:27.320 --> 00:13:30.220 order creating Schedule G. A whole new class. 00:13:30.399 --> 00:13:33.019 Hired and fired at will. Jobs end when the president 00:13:33.019 --> 00:13:35.980 who appointed them leaves office. Trump's rationale 00:13:35.980 --> 00:13:38.320 is that these short -term workers, no job security, 00:13:38.700 --> 00:13:40.779 will be more motivated, more efficient. But the 00:13:40.779 --> 00:13:43.000 sources argue it will undoubtedly motivate them 00:13:43.000 --> 00:13:45.740 to obey his orders, legal or not. And the big 00:13:45.740 --> 00:13:49.500 federal employee union, AFGE, is obviously very 00:13:49.500 --> 00:13:51.860 concerned. Legal challenges seem inevitable. 00:13:52.200 --> 00:13:54.960 Definitely something to watch. OK, next, let's 00:13:54.960 --> 00:13:56.960 look at how Democrats are talking about this 00:13:56.960 --> 00:14:00.759 new law. The one sources call the BBB or Big 00:14:00.759 --> 00:14:03.919 Bad Bill impacts taxes and health care. Right. 00:14:04.279 --> 00:14:06.480 Well, someone like J .D. Vance might highlight 00:14:06.480 --> 00:14:09.799 its tax cuts on tips and overtime. Democrats 00:14:09.799 --> 00:14:12.440 are hitting hard on the other side. big tax cuts 00:14:12.440 --> 00:14:14.980 for millionaires and billionaires. And crucially, 00:14:15.259 --> 00:14:17.840 the estimate that it will cause 12 million people 00:14:17.840 --> 00:14:19.720 to lose their health care. And they're really 00:14:19.720 --> 00:14:22.100 zeroing in on rural areas now, aren't they? Saying 00:14:22.100 --> 00:14:24.360 those areas will be hit hardest. Yeah. Pointing 00:14:24.360 --> 00:14:27.139 to things like potential county hospital closures. 00:14:27.279 --> 00:14:30.259 This is a big shift strategically. Democrats 00:14:30.259 --> 00:14:32.700 haven't typically spent much time campaigning 00:14:32.700 --> 00:14:35.759 hard in deep red rural areas. Their message seems 00:14:35.759 --> 00:14:38.559 really direct now. Republicans don't care about 00:14:38.559 --> 00:14:40.679 you. Look what they just did to you. Bernie Sanders 00:14:40.679 --> 00:14:42.799 has been doing this for months, right? Rallies 00:14:42.799 --> 00:14:46.080 in places like Idaho, Texas, showing other Democrats 00:14:46.080 --> 00:14:48.240 how it's done. And it seems to be catching on. 00:14:48.580 --> 00:14:50.980 Senator Hickenlooper, who was skeptical, is now 00:14:50.980 --> 00:14:53.480 apparently sold on it. He notes the frustrations 00:14:53.480 --> 00:14:56.279 people have is real, not just in rural areas, 00:14:56.419 --> 00:14:59.220 but across red states. Representative Melanie 00:14:59.220 --> 00:15:01.440 Stansberry said people were literally crying 00:15:01.440 --> 00:15:04.279 in rural New Mexico when she explained the bill's 00:15:04.279 --> 00:15:07.000 impact. So the plan is for many Democrats to 00:15:07.000 --> 00:15:09.740 spend the August recess out in these rural areas 00:15:09.740 --> 00:15:13.440 talking directly to people. A real grassroots 00:15:13.440 --> 00:15:16.440 push. Interesting shift. Now let's touch on some 00:15:16.440 --> 00:15:19.120 other political movements. Intelligence community 00:15:19.120 --> 00:15:22.139 and local elections. First, Senator Mark Warner. 00:15:22.330 --> 00:15:24.690 Democrat from Virginia, ranking member on the 00:15:24.690 --> 00:15:26.730 Senate Intel Committee. He's come out publicly 00:15:26.730 --> 00:15:29.509 saying Tulsi Gabbard is not competent to be director 00:15:29.509 --> 00:15:31.590 of national intelligence. Pretty strong words. 00:15:31.809 --> 00:15:34.529 Very strong. He believes she's trying to politicize 00:15:34.529 --> 00:15:37.070 the workforce and work product, making America 00:15:37.070 --> 00:15:40.070 less safe. He even said allies are scaling back 00:15:40.070 --> 00:15:42.509 intelligence sharing because of her. and called 00:15:42.509 --> 00:15:45.090 for her to resign or be fired. And he cited specifics 00:15:45.090 --> 00:15:48.250 too, allegedly firing Intel officials who wouldn't 00:15:48.250 --> 00:15:50.549 cook the books on an assessment about Venezuela 00:15:50.549 --> 00:15:53.529 and MS -13. And blamed her for sensitive Intel 00:15:53.529 --> 00:15:55.990 going to unauthorized people. And almost as if 00:15:55.990 --> 00:15:58.929 on cue, Gabbard immediately put out a report 00:15:58.929 --> 00:16:01.629 claiming Obama officials were part of a treasonous 00:16:01.629 --> 00:16:04.929 conspiracy to alter Intel on the 2016 election. 00:16:05.210 --> 00:16:07.850 Which was basically her spin on the finding that 00:16:07.850 --> 00:16:10.809 Russia interfered to help Trump. a finding every 00:16:10.809 --> 00:16:13.549 Intel committee member agreed on. Exactly. And 00:16:13.549 --> 00:16:15.769 her deputy chief of staff then called Warner 00:16:15.769 --> 00:16:18.970 a loser for falling for the debunked Russia hoax. 00:16:19.470 --> 00:16:22.090 It's quite something. Definitely playing hardball. 00:16:22.610 --> 00:16:25.370 OK, finally, let's look at New York City, the 00:16:25.370 --> 00:16:28.309 mayoral race. High stakes there. Yeah, Democratic 00:16:28.309 --> 00:16:30.970 nominee Zoran Momdani is trying to lock down 00:16:30.970 --> 00:16:33.190 support from party leaders. He's the favorite. 00:16:33.509 --> 00:16:35.690 But Mayor Eric Adams and former governor Andrew 00:16:35.690 --> 00:16:38.470 Cuomo are also on the ballot. And Cuomo is expected 00:16:38.470 --> 00:16:41.190 to get big money, tens of millions, from Bill 00:16:41.190 --> 00:16:43.870 Ackman, who sees Momdani as a potential disaster. 00:16:44.070 --> 00:16:47.210 So Momdani really needs the Democratic establishment 00:16:47.210 --> 00:16:50.350 because leaders could still endorse Cuomo. And 00:16:50.350 --> 00:16:52.450 it's a first past the post -election, winner 00:16:52.450 --> 00:16:55.570 takes all. So maybe 40 percent could be enough 00:16:55.570 --> 00:16:58.090 for Cuomo if the vote splits multiple ways. So 00:16:58.090 --> 00:17:00.370 this meeting between Momdani and House Minority 00:17:00.370 --> 00:17:02.970 Leader Hakeem Jeffries was pretty key. Right. 00:17:03.210 --> 00:17:05.650 Momdani was desperately hoping for endorsement. 00:17:05.670 --> 00:17:08.059 But he left with just. A promise for another 00:17:08.059 --> 00:17:11.059 meeting later. Apparently so. Jeffrey said he 00:17:11.059 --> 00:17:13.359 didn't know Mamdani well enough, but also raised 00:17:13.359 --> 00:17:16.480 a specific concern. Mamdani refusing to condemn 00:17:16.480 --> 00:17:19.700 the phrase, globalize the Intifada. Exactly. 00:17:20.140 --> 00:17:22.559 Which many see as calling for Israel's destruction. 00:17:23.000 --> 00:17:24.920 Jefferies clearly wants no part of that. And 00:17:24.920 --> 00:17:27.140 Republicans are trying to paint Mamdani as the 00:17:27.140 --> 00:17:30.140 new face of the Democrats, right? A new boogeyman. 00:17:30.339 --> 00:17:33.220 Yeah, the sources suggest figures like AOC aren't 00:17:33.220 --> 00:17:36.460 scary enough for them anymore. But Mamdani... 00:17:36.519 --> 00:17:40.160 Beard, a strange name, a vowed socialist, fits 00:17:40.160 --> 00:17:42.359 the bill they want to create. So Jeffries doesn't 00:17:42.359 --> 00:17:45.920 want to be tied to him, and probably fears Mom 00:17:45.920 --> 00:17:48.660 Donnie just isn't capable of governing NYC. Well, 00:17:48.859 --> 00:17:52.579 Cuomo, despite being described in very unflattering 00:17:52.579 --> 00:17:55.079 personal terms by the sources. Personally, a 00:17:55.079 --> 00:17:57.099 sleazebag and a mean old bastard, I think is 00:17:57.099 --> 00:17:59.500 the quote. But Jeffries likely sees him as a 00:17:59.500 --> 00:18:01.579 competent administrator who got things done as 00:18:01.579 --> 00:18:04.480 governor. So Jeffries is keeping his powder dry. 00:18:04.619 --> 00:18:07.240 Might not endorse anyone. Seems like a possibility. 00:18:07.619 --> 00:18:09.599 Playing the long game, perhaps. Okay, one last 00:18:09.599 --> 00:18:11.299 quick political story. This one's unexpected. 00:18:11.960 --> 00:18:13.839 From Minnesota, State Senator Nicole Mitchell. 00:18:14.059 --> 00:18:16.980 DFL Democrat, also an LT Colonel in the Air National 00:18:16.980 --> 00:18:19.099 Guard. She was just convicted of first -degree 00:18:19.099 --> 00:18:21.680 burglary. Yeah, for entering her estranged stepmother's 00:18:21.680 --> 00:18:23.799 house through a window, trying to get her dad's 00:18:23.799 --> 00:18:25.359 things because the stepmother wouldn't talk to 00:18:25.359 --> 00:18:27.079 her. She wasn't accused of taking anything else 00:18:27.079 --> 00:18:29.519 or damaging anything, so sentencing might be 00:18:29.519 --> 00:18:32.200 light, like a fine or probation. But the political 00:18:32.200 --> 00:18:34.619 fallout could be huge, right? Because the DFL 00:18:34.619 --> 00:18:37.119 holds a razor -thin majority in the Minnesota 00:18:37.119 --> 00:18:40.880 Senate, 34 -33. So if Mitchell is expelled or 00:18:40.880 --> 00:18:44.509 resigns... The Senate becomes tied 33 -33. Yeah. 00:18:44.950 --> 00:18:47.130 At least until a special election. Her district 00:18:47.130 --> 00:18:49.769 is fairly blue, so another DFLer would likely 00:18:49.769 --> 00:18:52.430 win that election. But in the meantime, the Senate 00:18:52.430 --> 00:18:54.369 could grind to a halt. And this is happening 00:18:54.369 --> 00:18:56.849 alongside other instability in Minnesota. Yeah. 00:18:57.069 --> 00:19:00.769 The state house is 67 -66 Republican, but with 00:19:00.769 --> 00:19:03.670 one vacancy. Right. That vacancy happened June 00:19:03.670 --> 00:19:07.750 14th, 2025, when Vance Bolter assassinated Melissa 00:19:07.750 --> 00:19:11.490 Hortman, the DFL representative for HD 34B. Which 00:19:11.490 --> 00:19:13.589 the sources describe as appearing to be a political 00:19:13.589 --> 00:19:16.410 assassination. Just chilling. Absolute groom. 00:19:16.869 --> 00:19:19.990 Her district is also very blue, so a DFLare will 00:19:19.990 --> 00:19:22.009 probably win the special election, tying the 00:19:22.009 --> 00:19:25.069 House 67 -67. And the Lieutenant Governor, Peggy 00:19:25.069 --> 00:19:27.769 Flanagan, also DFL, breaks ties in the House. 00:19:28.000 --> 00:19:31.220 So before Hortman's murder, the DFL basically 00:19:31.220 --> 00:19:34.380 controlled the legislature now. The tied Senate 00:19:34.380 --> 00:19:36.920 could block anything from the House. Meaning 00:19:36.920 --> 00:19:40.000 Nicole Mitchell's decision stay or go is suddenly 00:19:40.000 --> 00:19:42.359 critically important for the state. Makes the 00:19:42.359 --> 00:19:45.240 whole legislative picture kind of dicey, as the 00:19:45.240 --> 00:19:47.220 source says. Yeah, a lot riding on that one seat 00:19:47.220 --> 00:19:50.440 now. Wow. OK. What a deep dive indeed. We've 00:19:50.440 --> 00:19:53.329 really unpacked a lot. lawsuits with potentially 00:19:53.329 --> 00:19:56.029 shocking revelations. The incredibly volatile, 00:19:56.089 --> 00:19:58.829 maybe even a world -shaking future of crypto. 00:19:59.150 --> 00:20:01.630 These shifting dynamics of power, both in Washington 00:20:01.630 --> 00:20:04.329 and down to the state level in Minnesota. Yeah, 00:20:04.430 --> 00:20:06.130 these stories seem disconnected on the surface, 00:20:06.190 --> 00:20:09.250 but they all really touch on themes of information 00:20:09.250 --> 00:20:12.049 control, trust in institutions. And the high 00:20:12.049 --> 00:20:14.529 stakes of power, right? How individual actions 00:20:14.529 --> 00:20:17.369 can just ripple through everything legal, financial, 00:20:17.509 --> 00:20:20.440 political systems. Absolutely. Creates these 00:20:20.440 --> 00:20:22.220 far -reaching consequences we're only starting 00:20:22.220 --> 00:20:24.619 to see. So what does this all mean for you listening? 00:20:24.859 --> 00:20:27.319 I think it's a powerful reminder that behind 00:20:27.319 --> 00:20:29.740 every headline. There are these intricate layers. 00:20:30.240 --> 00:20:33.079 Strategy, influence, often surprising details 00:20:33.079 --> 00:20:35.240 that are actually shaping the world around us. 00:20:35.259 --> 00:20:36.880 Things aren't always as simple as they seem. 00:20:37.119 --> 00:20:39.960 Definitely not. And as you reflect on all this, 00:20:40.039 --> 00:20:43.079 maybe consider this thought. We live in an age 00:20:43.079 --> 00:20:46.599 with so much information, right? But truth feels 00:20:46.599 --> 00:20:50.380 increasingly contested. So how is society going 00:20:50.380 --> 00:20:53.000 to navigate this, the growing demands for transparency 00:20:53.000 --> 00:20:55.859 from leaders, while at the same time grappling 00:20:55.859 --> 00:20:59.240 with facts being manipulated, information being 00:20:59.240 --> 00:21:01.160 weaponized? What kind of impact could that have 00:21:01.160 --> 00:21:04.160 on public trust, on democracy itself? It's a 00:21:04.160 --> 00:21:06.500 big question, something to really mull over.