US Supreme Court deals FINAL crushing blow

Some major news out of the US Supreme. Court. So, there was one last avenue. that Democrats could employ to get the. Supreme Court to halt the ruling by the. Virginia Supreme Court blocking the. referendum redrawing the maps from going. into effect. The argument was that the. Supreme Court could issue an emergency. stay to allow the new map to go into. effect immediately while court. proceedings continue to avoid. irreparable harm. And this is from the. filing, quote, "The irreparable harm. resulting from the Supreme Court of. Virginia's decision is profound and. immediate." The court filing reads, "By. forcing the Commonwealth to conduct its.

congressional elections using districts. different from those adopted by the. General Assembly pursuant to a. constitutional amendment the people just. ratified, the Supreme Court of Virginia. has deprived voters, candidates, and the. Commonwealth of their right to the. lawfully enacted congressional. districts. And now we've got new news. from the US Supreme Court. They have. rejected the Democrats' effort to issue. a stay in the Virginia Supreme Court's. ruling, which means the left has. officially exhausted all legal avenues. So, the decision not to allow the new. maps will stand at least for this cycle. I don't have any doubt that it'll be.

sorted for 2028, but for this cycle, it. means Democrats have to compete with the. existing maps. Now, I should note that Republicans. currently occupy two congressional seats. that Abigail Spanberger won in 2025, and. a third seat that she just barely lost. So, if Democrats overperform this cycle, which obviously they're expected to do, I do think that there's a world where. Democrats flip three seats in Virginia. anyway, even without the new maps in. place. And I actually spoke about this. uh SCOTUS ruling even before it came. down and basically predicted this would.

happen. This is from 2 weeks ago on CNN. Do you think the United States Supreme. Court, which has supported Texas's right. to do this, and has supported. California's right to do this, will. support Virginia's right to do. redistricting? You think they might. overturn this? >> No, I think that the Supreme Court has. proven itself to be an arm of the. Republican Party, if nothing else. And. we have seen numerous instances where, whether it's this US Supreme Court, uh. where you had a bunch of justices uh. beat their chest about uh the importance.

of precedent and the Voting Rights Act, which is, you know, the that precedent. has been reaffirmed over and over and. over again for the past 60 years. Just. like Roe was precedent that was. reaffirmed over and over again. This. Supreme Court stands for its its own uh. adherence to the Republican Party. >> is And in fact, the Supreme Court's. hackery has been put on full display. I. don't think anything makes me more irate. than the fact that the Supreme Court. told Alabama voters that even though. they were using illegally gerrymandered. maps in 2022, 4 months was far too close.

to an election to make any changes. And. then the Supreme Court told Texas voters. that even though they were using. illegally gerrymandered maps in 2025, 4. months was again far too close to to an. election to make any changes. But this. year, in 2026, when they struck down the. Voting Rights Act in Louisiana, even. though 100,000 people had already voted. in an ongoing election, not even 4. months away, but ongoing, the Supreme. Court not only allowed the map to be. struck down, but expedited their own.

process to make it happen. There is no consistency other than their. blind allegiance to Republicans. That's. it. So, look, I know that when it comes to. the Supreme Court, it's all but. impossible to feel hopeless because of. how stacked the deck is against the. left. But I actually think that this is. useful. The hypocrisy is so obvious that. I think it's a good motivator. A good. motivator for Democratic officials in. states that they control, New Jersey, New York, Maryland, Colorado, Illinois, Washington, Oregon, to redraw their maps.

recognizing that they are contending. with an opponent that is power-hungry. and shameless. And a good motivator for. Americans more broadly, who can see that. shamelessness written on the wall. For. as apathetic as Americans generally are. when it comes to elections, one. consistent theme is that they show up. when the other side tries to blatantly. rig the rules of the game in their. favor. And that's very clearly what's. happening here. So, don't despair. Use it to motivate. you to ensure that we are never in this. position again. You're watching the No Lie podcast. Next.

up are my interviews with a state. representative from Tennessee, Justin. Jones, Pod Save America co-host Tommy. Vietor, and legal analyst Adam. Classfeld. No Lie is brought to you by. Factor. So, we've all been in this. situation. You're starving, you're. exhausted, you know what you should eat, but it involves cooking, and that takes. time, and you just don't have it in you. So, you grab the snacks instead. For me, eating healthy isn't a willpower. problem, it's a setup problem until I. found Factor. Look, I am the world's biggest advocate. now for fully prepared meals, but it's. legitimately difficult to find good.

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money-back guarantee, so if you're. unsatisfied for any reason, they'll. refund your money, no questions asked. Remember to head to zbiotics.com/btc. and use code BTC at checkout for 15%. off. Tennessee has become ground zero with. Republicans trying to eliminate all. black representation in the deep south. in the aftermath of the Supreme Court's. Voting Rights Act decision. Joining me now is Democratic member of. the Tennessee House of Representatives, Justin Jones. Justin, um can I have your reaction first and. foremost to this latest move by by.

Republicans in your state to eliminate. what was left of the congressional. districts that favor Democrats? You know, right when I walked in the. capital last Thursday, it was 2026 and. when I walked off the house floor, it. was pre-1965. What we are seeing is the. largest coordinated assault on black. political power in the South since the. end of reconstruction. You know, it was done with surgical. precision. Donald Trump called the. governor and demanded that we have a. special session. A couple days later, we. were back here in the General Assembly. in the General Assembly for session. Had.

less than 24 hours to look at a map and. it was voted on the next morning on the. house floor. And so this has been rushed. through all in service to the white. supremacist agenda. of Donald Trump and and his allies who. are so intent on keeping control of. black and brown communities at any cost. even when they know that their policies. are unpopular and that they're they're. not going to win this election cycle. fairly. You know, the these people obviously. are familiar with with Tennessee and the.

South more broadly, their history. And. so is there is there any shame when you. speak to these people recognizing that. they know full well what they're doing, that this is just basically a redux of. pre-1965. America? Like is is there is there any. Do these people look you in the eye? I'm. just trying to get a sense of of of how. they feel while they're doing what it is. that they're doing? I mean, these are folks who are drunk. with power and and and you know, one. thing that came out yesterday that I. just think shows how blatant it is is.

that we were under the the impression. that every Democrat was being stripped. of the committee. The speaker of the. house let stripped everyone except the. white men in our caucus. And so every. black member, every woman was stripped. of committee, but the white men in the. Democratic Caucus got to keep their. committees, we found out last night. And. so it just shows who, you know, is. dehumanized in spaces like this. These. are folks who. were laughing as they were passing these. racist maps, laughing at the people who. were coming expressing their grief, their frustration at the process and the. and the taking away of their. representation.

And and are folks who, you know, traffic. in the politics of racism. You know, one. of the members who voted for this is is. Representative Paul Sherrell, who just a. couple years ago joked about bringing. back hanging by a tree. You know, these. are folks who use racial slurs. Um, I've. been called boy multiple times as a. colleague in this building. You know, they they they think that we um. are back in the 1960s and and they are. very clear about that. And now this. policy agenda is is bringing us. backwards to that time in which we don't. have equal representation um in our. democratic process in which, you know, we may not even have black law makers at.

the federal level ever again um as long. as these type of racist Supreme Court. decisions stand um in the South because. we're not just seeing it in Tennessee, but Alabama, Mississippi, South. Carolina, Georgia. Um, there's an. assault uh war being waged against black. folks in the South and it's it's a civil. war and and we must call it for what it. is. It's a Jim Crow agenda um being led. by these these white supremacists who. wear suits and and and and and, you. know, have decorum, but are their their. actions are violence against communities. of color and and and it's political. violence in terms of taking away our. voice in in our democracy. I I I.

completely agree. And so, recognizing. the fact that these Republicans will. stop at nothing, that efforts to. compromise with them will garner us. nothing, that they had this idea where. they wanted to enact their 60-year plan. to overturn the Voting Rights Act and. they're actually doing it right now and. and it would only be foolish to think. that anything that the left does is. going to like to to cooperate with them. or compromise with them is going to stop.

them in any way. What should the left do. to counteract what we're seeing right. now? Like. amid all of this, amid all of these. actions, what steps need to be taken now to kind. of right this ship? I mean, you know, this is a moment to do. things out of the ordinary. You know, when I walked off the House floor, I. burned a Confederate flag um outside the. House chamber to draw attention and to. the need for urgency and moral clarity. in this moment. We are facing folks who. are trying to bring us back into the.

Confederacy. You know, I felt like I was. at a capital clan rally. These are not. folks who are playing by normal rules. and procedure. These are folks who want. control by any means necessary. And so. we need folks across this nation, states to respond in kind. We need to we. need to treat this with the. proportionate response that it requires, you know, to to to remove them from. their offices with with new maps, you. know, in states that can do it in New. Jersey, New York. Um but I don't want to. just make this a partisan thing because. I think that's what these Republicans.

are trying to do. What we're seeing is. is racial gerrymandering in the South. And cuz they're saying, "Well, this is. just partisan tit-for-tat. We're doing. it cuz you did it." But no, what they're. doing in the South is racial. gerrymandering. Memphis, Tennessee, um a. 51% black community has now been. gerrymandered where they're connected to. a district 300 mi away, diluting the. black vote, diluting their. representation. In my community here in. Nashville, you drive 30 minutes from one. Krispy Kreme in Nashville to one on the. outskirts of Nashville, just 30 minutes, you pass through five congressional. districts. That's how insane these maps. are just to visualize it. And so uh.

these are racial gerrymanders. This is. racial backlash. You have folks who are. now saying that we want to go after the. 14th Amendment. You have folks who um. are saying that, you know, this is what. they've been waiting for to dismantle. the Voting Rights Act since 1965 cuz. they thought it was racist against white. people. I mean, this is the absurdity. that we're hearing here. Um and just to. be clear, when they created the maps in. Tennessee, the speaker of the house. said, "There's no there's no race. involved. We just use um census data.". And so it's it's partisan. But Brian, if. you know census data, census does not. say what party you are, but it does say. what race you are. These were racially. drawn maps done by racist um you know,

folks who have surgical precision to. silence and and carve out the voices of. black and brown communities in the. South. I was on NewsNation about a week or two. ago, and I was debating with the host. Katie Pavlich, and her talking point on. this, when I brought up the fact that. uh that that Tennessee has been. gerrymandered within an inch of its. life, and that they're they're the the. voting power. for black and brown communities in. Nashville, in Memphis has been. completely cracked into multiple. districts, completely diluted. Was that.

the South has been desegregated as a. result of this Voting Rights Act. decision? And so what would your. response be. to these Republicans and right-wingers. who suggest that that this Supreme Court. decision was actually desegregation and. not segregation? I mean, it's absurd. It's absurd in a. moment in my state in Tennessee one in. five black Tennesseans cannot vote. because of felony disenfranchisement. In. my state, we are seeing a re-segregation. of our schools because we're defunding. our public education system to give. white wealthy kids vouchers, coupons to. go to private school. I mean, we are.

seeing a re-segregation of our of, you. know, this this this resurgence of the. southern aristocracy all in service to. an agenda that is fearful that America. is becoming more diverse and. multi-racial. You know, what this what this decision. did, Brian, was create all nine. districts in Tennessee are now majority. white. Even though black people are over. 20% of the population and black and. brown people together are over 25% of. the population. Every one of Tennessee's. nine congressional districts are now. majority white. They've created majority. white districts in our state like we've. seen back before the 1965 Voting Rights.

Act diluting minority voting power, diluting our voice in the political. process. And it was done intentionally. And and and and what what the. consequence is going to be is that we've. seen this in Nashville. We have. congressmen who live over, you know, an. hour or two hours away, have no offices. here. And so our constituents don't have. services, they don't have support at the. federal level. They're calling our state. offices trying to get support because. they cannot reach anybody at the federal. level because they don't even see us as. worthy of being, you know, responded to. And so we are we are treated like we're. a colony essentially without, you know, having a voice in our democratic.

process. And it's and it's being done again. across the South to bring us back to. times we don't want to go to. That's, you know, when they say they want to. take this nation back, they're literally. taking us back to pre-1965. And they're not going to stop there. And. that's what the message to the nation is. that, you know, if If fight this in the. South, we you know, they're going to. wage they're waging a battle against. multiracial democracy all across this. nation. And so, we are the canary in the. coal mine. When you said that you burned a. Confederate flag, what was the reaction? Uh did you encounter any any anyone else. from the state legislature?

I mean, I know that some of my. colleagues are calling on for me to be. arrested. You know, they they've said. that it's arson, even though it was a. you know, it was a a flag that was. burned and nothing else. Um you know, to. me it's very telling that these racists. who I work with, who call themselves. representatives, are more offended by. the burning of a Confederate flag than. they are about the burning down of our. democracy. I think that that shows us. where their loyalties are and where. their um concern is. You know, these. people are literally creating are. arsonists for democracy. They're burning. the democratic process, burning through.

um all the protections that we have and. and spitting on the graves of our. martyrs, people like um Viola Liuzzo and. um Jimmie Lee Jackson, um Medgar Evers, who literally were murdered and and. killed, you know, fighting for things. like the Voting Rights Act, the crown. jewel of the civil rights movement. And. so, this is who these folks are. And. they're unapologetic. Their masks are. off or better yet, I should say their. white sheet you the white hoods are off. and they're showing us exactly who they. are. You had mentioned before that. Democrats need to respond in kind. What would your message be to those. states that have had the opportunity to.

move and yet haven't yet? And then more. broadly, you just your message to to. state legislators and governors across. the country where right now Democrats do. have the majority. May perhaps not the. ability to redraw maps for 2026, but as. we move toward 2028, where frankly, we. haven't seen much movement. I mean, yes, we got a map redrawn in California to. neutralize what happened in Texas. Uh kudos to the folks in in Virginia and. and and shame on the Virginia Supreme. Court, but we have other weapons right.

now that could be wielded. New Jersey, New York, Maryland, uh where both Bill. Ferguson is blocking the effort. Illinois, Colorado, Washington, Oregon, and other than those two states that I. mentioned at at the top, we haven't seen. any movement at the same time that we're. seeing movement from the Republicans in. Florida, in Texas, in Alabama, Louisiana, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Missouri, Ohio. And so there. is a a pretty big asymmetry here in how. the two different parties are wielding. power in this case.

You know, we still have Democrats who. are acting like this is early 2000s. politics. You know, the that world of. normalcy of our politics has has gone. You know, we are in the midst of we have. to say that this is a war. It's a war. for the future of our democracy and the. South is a front line in that battle. And so, you know, to I would say to the. governors and to the lawmakers in those. states that this is a moment to put our. morals above our manners. You know, what. is moral is to act not just for us but. for generations who are counting on us. what we do in this moment. I think we're.

going to be judged not by what we do but. by what we don't do. And so I would err. on the side of action. Err on the side. of doing something because come a couple. years and our democracy has crumbled and. we're back in a resegregated America, people are going to be looking at who. did not act. And so I would encourage. the states of New York, of Illinois, of. of of Washington, of Oregon to take. action. And and and if you need us to. come from the South and tell you what. the stakes are, I'm happy to do that. I. was just in Sacramento this weekend and. I came from the South to Sacramento to. lift up what's going on here because. people I think they they they don't.

understand the stakes of what we're. fighting right now. And and and the ancestral trauma that's. coming up as we're as we're dismantling. black voting power. and how it's going to spread across this. nation like a cancer. And so I I think. that we need, you know, our democracy. requires a disruption sometimes. We need. folks to disrupt the normalcy, the. business as usual to do something bold. and to do something, you know, that that. is proportionate to the opponents we. face in the battle that we face because. they're they're being, you know, they. are ruthless in their hold for control.

and we're still trying to make friends. with folks who are are are literally. aligning themselves with. authoritarianism and man who less about. us and the people we represent. Justin, in your conversations with folks. who were around pre-Civil Rights Act, pre-1965, how did they maintain the strength to. keep going recognizing the extent to. which we have we have slid back? Like. these people have been there before. I. think I think for for younger folks, black or white, as long as they're on. the the side of democracy, like we we.

obviously all see. um kind of the the the inequity and the. horror of what's happening right now, but but it's new for a lot of us. And. and I think um I think, you know, for. for people who've seen this before, there's got to be a certain um a certain. degree of of trauma that that I think. people um who weren't around prior to. the Civil Rights Act uh um kind of. shoulder onto themselves. And so, what. have those conversations with folks been. like? Yeah.

You know, I was just talking to um Ms. Diane Nash. Um she was one of the. leaders and and organizers in Selma in. in 1965. And today's actually her. birthday, 88. And and you know, I was. talking to her about what this moment. means in our history. You know, they. they gave their life's work and some and. she said, you know, our friends gave. their lives um pushing for things like. the Voting Rights Act. And to see this. president, the Supreme Court um spitting. on that work, spitting on those graves, I think there is there is a trauma being. resurrected um because, you know, these. are things that we it hasn't even been. 60 years. And already though the gains. that we thought were won are being.

dismantled. And I think the lesson in. this is that if you study things like. reconstruction, um there's a moment. where you had multiracial democracy in. the South. You had black lawmakers. And. then you had this white backlash at the. end of the 1800s. And you didn't have. black legislators in the South until the. 1960s again. And we can get back to that. point of of of deconstruction. And and. and I I don't think it's alarmist to say. that we're headed in that direction. Um. and so, I think, you know, what what the. message is is number one is that the. fight for freedom must be fought in one. in every generation. That the Civil. Rights Movement is not just something we. should read about, but But something.

that's actively happening right now. And. we're facing the Bull Connors, the. George Wallaces, these white. nationalists of today and we have to be. just as courageous as and as relentless. in resisting them. I'm heading to. Montgomery tonight for a large rally of. southern, you know, organizers and and. and black lawmakers across the South. gathering in Montgomery to say that if. you come for one of us, you're coming. for all of us. And it has to be. multi-generational, it has to be. multi-racial. That's what we represent. and that's what they're afraid of, you. know? And so I think that's that's the. message that we're hearing. And number. two, that one of the most important. lessons one of my mentors told me is.

that you can judge the effectiveness of. your protest or your movement by the. response of your opponents. So the. reason that they're acting like this is. because we're being effective in. out-organizing them. They're fearful of. things go out, you know, as the rules. would allow that they would lose power. and so they know that we've been. effective in organizing here in the. South and so they have to cheat to. maintain power. And so it shows how. fragile these these white men in power. are. It shows how weak this system is. and and it shows that it's a death. rattle of this of this white supremacist. system and so they're trying to take us. down with them, but we we're going to. fight like hell, you know, for our for ourselves and for.

generations who are yet to come. Justin, how do you how do you. how do you keep the faith at a moment. like this where you have all the cards. stacked against you? Things are actively. moving in the wrong direction and it. doesn't feel like on the horizon at. least immediately there is there is some. solution to this and so how do you wake. up on a daily basis and go into work in. a. you know, in in the Tennessee House of. Representatives where there are so many. people who are perfectly content to as. you said align themselves with these.

white supremacist institutions. and still and still do that despite any. feelings of hopelessness or despair? Yeah. You know, I've had a very unusual. time here in the legislature. I was only. in office for three months before I was. expelled by these same white. Republicans, you know, kicked out as the. youngest black lawmaker. So I've I kind. of, you know, come in with clarity that. I'm not here, you know, to make friends. with these folks, but we're here to make. change for our district, you know? And I. think, you know, what I see is that. courage is contagious, you know, when.

these maps were being passed, it didn't. happen in silence. People rose up, shut. down committees. Um, you know, we, you. know, people that this movement is. growing and they're fearful of it, you. know. And which is why they're passing. things like banning curriculum in school. cuz they're afraid that kids are too. conscious right now, which is why. they're passing things like felon. disenfranchisement because they know. that if we actually turn out in our. numbers, um, we can get these folks out. of office. And so, you know, the South, what gives me hope is that we are not a. red state, but we're just a state that. has been oppressed for so long, but I. think you can only push people to a. certain point before it's like that.

spring. And I think we're getting to. that point of of momentum where you're. seeing that there's going to be a. reckoning happening here. And then I. know that, you know, we we we are. indebted not to our only our ancestors, but to our children, those who are. coming after us. But I don't want to be, um, insincere and say that it's it's not. hard sometimes. I mean, it being here in. the South as the youngest black lawmaker. can be isolating. You know, being kicked. off my committees, having colleagues. who, um, call me boy. You know, my first. week in the legislature, Jack Johnson, the Senate majority leader, told me that. I'm worthless and I'm not supposed to be. here. These things that, you know, these.

are the reality of of where we work, but. it also gives me clarity of what we're. fighting against. And I'm I'm I. appreciate that the racists here, um, you know, have the Confederate flag, that they're honest about it cuz at. least it's it's it's not as subtle and. and as as, you know, below the surface, but our opponents and what we're facing. is is is clear as day. And it's so. anybody who's denying that we're in a. racist America right now, pay attention. what's happening in the South. They're. telling us who they are. And so, it's no. longer this post-racial, after Obama, racism's over, but we're seeing, no, the. racists are here and they're telling on. themselves and and they're showing who.

they are. And so, we should need to show. them who we are, too, and that we are, you know, the descendants of of the John. Lewis and MLK and Ella Baker and Fannie. Lou Hamer, and we're going to fight like. hell like like those who came before us. to make sure that they don't drag us. backwards, um, to a time we don't want. to go to. I know that you, uh, you just mentioned. that you went to Sacramento, um, to so. so that folks over here where I am in. California and across the country can. kind of get get a better sense of what's. happening. in Tennessee and in the south. For those. who are watching and listening right.

now, what can we all do to help? How can. we be most helpful in this moment? Yeah. I mean number one I think there's power. in presence, you know, I know we're. going to be putting out a call for folks. to come to the south. This is a front. line in the battle for our democracy. right now and and and so often people. only ever pay attention to North. Carolina and Georgia, the quote unquote. swing states. Tennessee may not be a. swing state but we're a state that will. swing back when when we were kicked and. I think Mississippi's the same Alabama, South Carolina. We cannot write off or. abandon any state in this moment. We are. facing the forces of a new confederacy.

and the only thing that will defeat it. is a coalition of United States against. this new confederacy and so joining with. us, you know, as there is calls to. action, I know we're going to be putting. out a call to action for a freedom. summer here in Tennessee calling on. folks like they did in 1964 to come. south, help us engage in the largest. mass voter registration mobilization. campaign since the 1960s. Sending resources because you know, states like ours are so under invested. in the national Democrats are not going. to come and and and often you know, don't don't see the worth of places like. this, you know, but this but we know.

that our people. are scrappy and that we can do a lot. even with a little resources and so. standing with us, I'm helping us to. build infrastructure. We have amazing. organizations where we're we're we're. building the Southern Defense Coalition. that we're going to be looking in. launching and so you know, just keep an. eye out for that and and to really. amplify what's going on. because I think some people don't. realize how quick this descent into. white. um. supremacist Jim Crow systems is is. happening is happening at lightning.

speed. and and I think people need to. understand that. as goes the south, so goes the nation. That they have a southern strategy and. we need to have our own southern. strategy of solidarity and so now's the. time to show solidarity with states in. the south. and and I appreciate you brother for. amplifying this because I think so often. even you know, state like ours is not. the stories are not told in in national. media and and we need to let the world. know what's happening here uh because if. if it can happen here it's it's going to. spread across we're the tip of the spear. but they're not going to stop here and. that's that's the the message I want to. send to America is that that you know if.

if they're doing this here that we're. the testing ground we are the laboratory. of what they want to spread across this. nation project 2025 was Tennessee 2024. it was Alabama 2024 Mississippi 2024. we've been dealing with these forces for. so long so pay attention to us because. we we have been resisting them um we've. been under maggot control long before. 2026 2024 you know we we've been dealing. with this for a long time and so you. know folks are experts on on how to. fight this and and I have been key in in. building this coalition to multi-racial. democracy.

Well I I could not be more grateful for. your voice. I couldn't be more grateful. for the fight even with all these cards. stacked against you and I know that. everybody watching and listening right. now feels the same. So Justin I. appreciate you taking the time today. Appreciate you brother. I'm joined now. by the co-host of Pod Save America Tommy. Vietor. Tommy have you heard about this. secret death letter that Trump left for. J.D. Vance? >> You don't have a secret death letter? I. have one in my house from my wife. >> [laughter]. >> Well this is this is nuts. I'm going to. throw to a clip right here. As someone. said to me they could just.

put something in the air that makes him. sick 30 days later. >> up to me at a at a at an event recently. on Ali Velshi and said the same thing. and I said absolutely not. I have no. fear at all of them doing something. The. idea that you do something that. undermines your recognition. goes against what they wish to have. Secondarily remember what the president. said about another country trying to do. that. Uh he said you know that there is. a a letter in the drawer in the resolute. desk that is addressed to the vice. president should something happen to.

him. So. that that is the language of power. You. know China could do something so sneaky. as they did with COVID that you wouldn't. be able to really tell if the president. just got Lyme disease and fell ill in. America. >> we we have protocols. Trust me. Not ones. I can discuss, but we have protocols. So, J.D. Vance is there to serve as the. white knight should something something. happen to Trump. How much confidence you. have that How much confidence do you. have that J.D. Vance would be able to.

carry out Trump's dying wishes? >> Here's what I have confidence in, that. J.D. Vance has broken into the Oval. Office, steamed open that envelope, [laughter]. read the letter, copied the handwriting, replaced it with his own version, then. put it back in there. [snorts]. Also, I don't I don't think the. Constitution says that upon your death. you can govern from the grave via. letter. >> Yeah. Although, I mean, the the the reality is that that Trump. still views himself as kingmaker and. guaranteed that even if even after he's.

out of office, if he's out of office, he. will absolutely want to be like the guy. when it comes to dictating from beyond. the Oval Office. >> Also, it just it tells you everything. you need to know about Donald Trump that. his secret death letter is not to his. family. >> just going to say that. >> [laughter]. >> It's to J.D. Vance. It's to a guy he. kind of hates. >> [laughter]. >> Donald Trump he every it's almost like. it's almost sweet when you hear about it. in the beginning. It's like, if. something should happen to the. president, he has this secret letter and. it's like, oh, Melania is going to be so. relieved. It's like, to J.D. Vance.

dictating exactly how he should govern. the event of his demise. >> It probably just says, "Punch yourself. in the face. Do it again. Lose weight. Punch yourself again. I can't lose. weight. [laughter] Stay on the GOP. once." Um, how funny would it be if. Trump drafted a second secret death. letter and to Marco Rubio and then just. started being like, "Guys, I mean I mean. basically I mean that that storyline has. come kind of come into the zeitgeist now. where you know he's going to just pit. these people against each other. And ultimately it's going to it's going. to redound to his benefit. It's like, who who wants my endorsement more and.

and how can you prove it? Yeah, like. look, he he knows that these guys are. his I mean, they both are. They. work for him literally, but also Trump. knows that in a Republican primary, he. can say to MAGA, "Go this way or go that. way." And those two know it, too. So, he's just going to hold that over them. forever. And the reason he's doing it is. because he secretly hates them. I'm. pretty convinced [laughter] of it. Well, it's true. Like, if he had any if he had. any respect for them, he wouldn't be. able to dictate what they could or. couldn't do because he would just have. enough respect that they would do it on.

their own, but he doesn't. And so, he's. going to play them as as puppets, basically. Treat them as puppets. and not give his endorsement until the. absolute last minute, if he does at all, because he wants to have leverage over. these people for as long as he possibly. can. Yeah. Yeah, actually, I got a copy. of the letter, and what it says is, "If. I die, J.D., and you become president, while you're in this house, you sit when. you pee.". >> [laughter]. >> He's like He's like, "Well, no changes. there.". I think I just stole a joke from like a. Chappelle Show episode in like 2004. Well, you know, both people both people.

who know that joke will be able to call. you out for it. Um Anyway, what else we talking about? How how does this make you think about. the um the you know, um fight to become. basically the MAGA heir between these. people? Because obviously, you know, you. do have Marco Rubio, you do have J.D. Vance. J.D. Vance is being sent out to. to I think May He was in Maine today. talking about the administration's fight. against uh fight against fraud, which is. the ultimate piece of irony because you. know, the first thing Trump did is is pardon a.

bunch of people who have committed a. fraud as soon as they paid his campaign. >> Right. Um so, but but at the same time, like these people don't really garner. the same attention, and they have the. stink of this administration's. engagement in like foreign wars on them. Uh this administration the the stink of. this administration's high prices on. them, high gas costs. Like, how does that Like, if if Trump had any. allegiance to these people, isn't isn't he just undermining it by. basically um having them be a part of an. administration that is just plummeting.

in terms of their favorability? Yeah, I. I think it it sort of shows how tough a. position those guys are in politically. If you're a part of this administration. and want to come next because Trump's. approval rating among all voters is just. going down and down and down and down. >> polling that it's somewhere between, you. know, 35%. >> And his disapproval on questions like, I. don't know, the economy is like 70%. disapproval. >> the last the last poll I saw showed. Democrats leading on crime. It was like.

D plus three on crime. >> Yeah, Harry Enten from CNN said that. Trump is now the owner of the five worst. polling results in like presidential. history somewhere. So, congrats on that. However, his his standing with the base is still. rock solid with like the the people who. define themselves as MAGA. And the. people who define themselves as MAGA are. who you need to win any presidential. primary process or nomination process. >> But just the primary. I mean like you. you. >> screws you in the general, yeah. Totally. I mean in this instance like. having having the primary voters support.

you. and support somebody extreme enough that. that they are too extreme for. independents is just a recipe for. disaster because if you're going to be I. mean this is this is the the usual. problem with with primaries anyway. Like. they're going to turn out somebody who's. the most advantageous for the base, but. if there's no buy-in from independent. voters then then you have no chance in a. general election. >> Yeah, it's it's a really challenging. place for J.D. Vance and Marco Rubio to. be especially. given how badly the war in Iran is. going. And I'm like, you know, you might. have noticed that things are not going. well with Iran. The Strait of Hormuz is.

closed like two months later. No sign of it being opened. However, like J.D. Vance's political identity was. predicated on his experience in Iraq and. how it told him that foreign wars are. bad and regime change wars are bad. So, thus he opposed them. But he was not. able to prevent this one from happening. So, he's trying to leak all over the. place that he was opposed to it. secretly. >> to the New York Times. J.D. Vance is the. lone skeptic in the room. >> like, buddy, I'm sorry, you own this. just as much as anyone else. And Marco. Rubio, like he was riding high after the. Venezuela thing. Um he went to uh.

Capitol Hill to brief members of. Congress about the Iran war early on. Did this one press conference where he. was like, "The Jews made us do it." and. then he like ran away and hid for a. month. Then he did one other press. conference where he was in like a good. mood and reporters decided he was great. and happy and like the good competent. cabinet member. But again, like I just. he can wear this the jacket for this as. much as anybody else. But do you think. that there's a world in which you know, recognizing how quick the media cycle. moves, the news cycle moves, that that.

Marco Rubio and or J.D. Vance can be. able to run away with this thing and not. kind of wear it as an albatross around. their neck just because enough time will. have passed and nobody has the attention. span to focus on this? >> It's possible. I do think like the I. think there are big swaths of MAGA that. just feel betrayed and will be a vocal. angry minority. And like that opens a. space for someone like a Tucker Carlson. who was like, "Hey, I oppose this war. You know what else I oppose? Covering up. the Epstein files, something you guys. really cared about." And like you can. get a lot of earned media off of that.

>> 100%. I mean, I you know, look, I don't. I don't want this to be like, you know, a prediction show about what the 2028. Republican primary will look like, but. but the but the but the but the biggest. beneficiary of all of this is not Marco. Rubio, it's not J.D. Vance, it is Tucker. Carlson, which I know like, you know, worries people that are that are. watching listening. um because he is as bad if not worse. than all these MAGA acolytes or even. Trump himself, but he's also smart. enough to recognize not where the puck. is, but where the puck is going. And so. he can see that like he can basically.

extricate himself from the unpopular. aspects of what the administration is. doing, whereas J.D. Vance and Marco. Rubio can't. They can't come out and. say, you know, what the administration. is doing by engaging in a cover-up over. the Epstein files is disgusting. They can't say, "Hey, engaging in this. two-month war that we promised we would. never engage in is is miserable choice. that's that's not only undermining one. of our core campaign promises of no new. foreign wars, but also sending the price. of gas surging for every single American. at home, and spending billions of.

dollars on foreign wars when that money. should be going to America first. parties. None of those people can say. anything, but these people outside of. the administration like Tucker Carlson. have the ability to do exactly that. Yeah, Tucker what knows when to throw a. Hail Mary with a puck. or when to just do like three pucks in a. cloud of pucks. Or. Tune in Tune in next week as me and. Tommy launch our sports show. >> [laughter]. [gasps]. >> Yeah, no, look Tucker I like Tucker is. genuinely well positioned. He's built a. huge media empire that he owns. Like he.

doesn't have to go through Fox News's. filter anymore to reach people. Um, I. don't look I I've I go back and forth. I. would be very worried if you would if he. ran if I were like J.D. Vance. Also, they're buddies. Um, I would like Tucker. seems genuinely. paranoid and like worried about his own. safety, and campaigning involves leaving. your compound in Maine and like hitting. the trail and talking to a lot of. people. So, >> Potentially, he might also just be kind. of feeding into the general paranoia. that that sells on the right. I mean, there's a reason that for like the last. 20 years if you if you have a right-wing.

show, you can you can sell these like. survival packs and like, you know, >> I think he started his own like dip. brand, too. Yeah. Well, you'll need that. I think I have in the apocalypse. Honestly, you might. >> [laughter]. >> Yeah, you might. You take the edge off. in the apocalypse, too. You know, the. the sad thing is it's not just Marco. Rubio and J.D. Vance who are kind of um. left looking like fools um. right now in this media cycle. There's. also Kash Patel. >> No, no, no. He's doing great. What are.

you talking about? >> um, can you can you uh give us an idea of. Kash Patel's latest scandal here? What. he was just found doing. uh on vacation. >> Okay, the latest thing that the fake. news media's bitching about. >> [laughter]. >> with my guy Kash, who's honestly. sick and he gave me this awesome bourbon. bottle with his name [laughter] on it. He's dope. >> to pound booze. He knows where the puck. is going cuz he plays hockey. yeah, he does. He won the Olympics. Anyway,

>> That's my That's my gold medal winning. FBI director. >> Apparently Cash Patel. So, he took an. official trip to Australia and New. Zealand. On the way there, he stopped in. Hawaii, like met with the FBI field. office there, whatever, makes sense, like a refueling stop. On the way back, he stopped again, apparently for 2 days. And I think that's when he went on a VIP. snorkeling trip. On the government dime. Uh Were you wondering Were you wondering. where this snorkeling trip occurred? >> It was. It was in Pearl Harbor. Uh. around the USS Arizona. >> [laughter]. >> Which is a ship bombed.

by the Japanese, where 900 sailors and. Marines, their bodies are entombed in. this ship. Was that before or after he. went on the uh the bar crawl in. Auschwitz? >> Mhm. >> [laughter]. >> Doesn't snorkeling over the watery grave. of 900 sailors and Marines start like It. sound like the start of a horror movie? >> It's also like so ridiculous to think of. the FBI director, like while these. service members and law enforcement. officials are like at the military base. in Pearl Harbor, that like they look.

over at the water and there's like the. FBI director just, you know, with his. like paddling his feet in his. bathing suit there with a snorkel on his. face. >> to think if there's a. It It might be the case that you never. look dorkier than when you're out of. water and snorkeling. >> Correct. This would be like the uh the. modern-day equivalent of who is the. person that that wore the that did the. ad? >> in the tank? Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, just Cash Patel like. waddling around in his snorkel. >> no How do we have no photos of that? >> to be pictures. There has to be one.

Someone nailed this. If there's like. pictures from every 6 months of Mike. Vrabel and Diana Rossini at various. bars, there's got to be one photo of. Cash Patel. The problem though is like. it the site is a memorial. It's totally. off limits. Like you cannot go there and. just snorkel and paddle around. So we. must have like specifically requested to. go snorkeling. at the cemetery, the grave site for 900. sailors and Marines from like 1941. Well, I hope the I hope the views were. fun. I'm sure he saw some.

you know, beautiful sites and like wacky. wacky. you know, things down there eyes. pointing in the opposite directions and. the and the fish, too. >> [laughter]. >> He's he's really geeked about the the. ground zero scavenger hunt he's doing. later today. He sucks. How is Trump not fired this. loser yet? He's like humiliating. him left and right. I mean, the only. answer right is that Kash Patel is like. I'm going to kill your enemy. I know what's in the Epstein files. >> that, too. But he's like anyone, you.

know, any like seashell based crimes the. Kash Patel is on the case and he's going. to prosecute it. Yeah. Well, that's a show. Yeah. So, look to keep learning what other. shows are happening. If you're not yet. subscribed to Pod Save America's YouTube. channel, please make sure to subscribe. I'm going to put that link right here on. the screen and also in the post. description. And and also if you like to. subscribe to this channel, help build up. progressive media so that these. clowns. don't get to dictate what is or is not. on the news.

>> can afford a haircut finally. Yeah, please. We now have a major update on. the reported $10 billion lawsuit that. Donald Trump was waging against his own. IRS. Here to explain all of this and. more is All Rise News's Adam Classfeld. Adam, first and foremost, as it relates. to this new news that came in on Donald. Trump's lawsuit against his own IRS, what can you tell us? Well, the reporting that I'm reading, Brian, is that he is expected to drop. his $10 billion lawsuit that he has been.

hammered about because he would be. receiving taxpayer money on a lawsuit. that he would be negotiating with his. own government. And his way out of this. is to create what he calls a. weaponization fund of 1.7 billion. dollars that would be paid out to people. that he claims were targeted by the. Biden administration. What this means in. practice, a giant slush fund that he. could use to pay out January 6th.

insurrectionists, including people who. filed a lawsuit against the government. The class action includes people who. it's assaulted cops with chemical spray. We're We're talking about the violent. rioters who are named in this lawsuit as. seeking to collect from the government. They're the type of people who would. collect from this 1.7 billion dollar. slush fund. Now, it's being billed by. the Trump DOJ according to the sources.

of ABC News and this reporting as a. weaponization fund, it's going to. compensate the people who are wrongly. targeted under Biden according to their. framing of it. But in practice, what. this is is a giant slush fund for anyone. who he thinks would be more politically. convenient to pay out than to see the. taxpayers. looking at him pocketing the own money.

for his own money from his own IRS. So, let's talk about why he would agree to. do something like this because Trump. doesn't do anything unless it ultimately. benefits himself. And so, why would he. relinquish a lawsuit, you know, bad. press notwithstanding. Why would he. relinquish a lawsuit to create a slush. money fund where he could pay out his. own friends and family and allies and. donors presumably? Where does he derive. the benefit in all of this? Like like I. mean this is, you know, it's going A to.

B. A to B here is not not a big leap. So, how does this help him? Well, we are in a midterm year. This is. a story that has generated a. amount of terrible press for him. in a midterm year. And also, you need to. look at the fine print. According to ABC. News' reporting, I'm going to read. directly here. The settlement terms are. expected to prohibit Trump from directly. receiving payments related to those. three legal claims. However, entities.

associated with Trump are not explicitly. barred from filing additional claims, sources said. So, here we have a. recognition, according to the network. sources, that Trump could stand to. benefit from these. settlements directly through the. entities associated with him. And Trump. has plenty of entities associated with. him. As for the optics about this, he might.

think branding this weaponization. compensation fund salvages the bad. optics of this. But, at the end of the. day, what we have here, and explicitly. named in this story, are the January 6 rioters who filed a. lawsuit that they would be compensated. for the so-called weaponization because. they were prosecuted for such things as. spraying Capitol Police with chemical. spray, throwing a gas mask at law. enforcement. And there were Oath Keepers.

and Proud Boys among the people listed. in that complaint. And we've already. seen settlements from the likes of. Michael Flynn, the family of Ashli. Babbitt. So, this weaponization fund, if. people don't dig deep beneath the. surface, might seem like a rebranding. win for the Trump administration, but I. expect there's going to be pretty. rigorous coverage of it going forward.

Now, given the fact that he has this. slush fund that he's going to use to pay. out people who suffered the indignity of. being prosecuted for their own crimes, is there any any way to prevent our. taxpayer dollars from being able to to. go to this kind of stuff? Like is this. susceptible to any type of lawsuit? Because it seems crazy that there's. going to be 1.7 billion dollars. of taxpayer funds that Donald Trump's. going to be able to send off to. criminals and campaign donors at will.

And so like is any of this subject to. oversight whatsoever? Well, according to the reporting, this. is going to be subject to legal. challenge. And what I have noticed in my. own reporting on this story, my own. research on this story, when you looked. at Trump's lawsuit against the IRS, a. federal judge had. essentially thrown a question at the. Trump Justice Department officials about. whether there was jurisdiction over the. case, whether there was a case or.

controversy on the grounds of are you. two on different sides. >> Right. And so in the typical case, the. United States versus X, you know, whatever X is, these are opposing. parties. But when the parties aren't. opposing and when they're representing. the same interest, that might throw a. wrench in things. And so we're already. looking at judges pushing back a little. bit. Uh so I expect there to be. continuing legal challenges. I think.

Trump is trying to uh mitigate the. branding challenge, the optics challenge. in a midterm year where people are. really starting to talk about the use of. their taxpayer funds on schemes that. benefit him and his cronies. Uh so I I. do expect that this won't be the last. we're hearing of this story. This isn't, you know, a fait accompli. They came up. with this fund and it's smooth sailing.

from here. I mean, also consider the. fact that if he has carte blanche, assuming that that his idea comes to. fruition. If he has carte blanche to. dole this money out to his his own. campaign donors, what's to stop them. from donating it right back to him? I. mean, it seems pretty obvious that if he. wants to pay somebody out with a. handshake agreement or an understanding. that, okay, 50 or 60 or 70 or 80% of the money. has to go right back into his own. coffers. I mean,

is there anything stopping that from. happening? And that's why it's important to always. read the fine print. Again, the. reporting. saying here that the entities that are. under his control aren't specifically. barred and he can. put forward legal action. That's a hell. of a loophole. So, I think that any fund. like this is going to be scrutinized. It. is going to come under legal challenge. You're going to have judges one option. that judges have and we've seen this.

throughout Trump's second term is they. can appoint a so-called friend of the. court, an amicus, to provide the what. their view of the law is on the judge's. power to intervene. That happened when. the Trump Justice Department threw out. the charges against former New York City. Mayor Eric Adams on bribery and other. allegations. There was an amicus. appointed to instruct. the judge on their power. So, I think.

this isn't the last we're hearing of. this story. I think what we're hearing. right now is that. the Trump Justice Department and Trump. himself realize they have a serious. branding problem. You know, Adam, the. the interesting part I think of all of. this is that in everything that Trump. has done, he's never worried about. public opinion. I mean, he's engaged in. a war in the Middle East that is. aggressively unpopular, continued with. this cover-up of the Epstein files, aggressively unpopular, launched a trade. war that's raised the cost of. everything, that's unpopular, cut.

Medicaid and food assistance, that's. unpopular, dodge the Department of. Government Efficiency, that was. unpopular. So, everything he's done has. not been in service of of. maintaining some degree of support from. the public. It's just been to help. himself. I mean, when he builds a. ballroom, when he repaves. the Rose Garden and the walkway to the. Oval Office, when he retrofits a Qatari. jet to the tune of billions of dollars. that taxpayers are on the hook for, when. he hosts these crypto dinners where he's.

doubled his net worth, where he's talking about building this. arch. I mean, all of this stuff is for. him. And so, I guess that's why it's difficult for me. to. to understand why all of a sudden, when. he's self-dealing in exactly the same. way he self-dealt for all of this time. for the last year and a half, why. suddenly is this the bar? Why suddenly. is he thinking, "Oh, this would be a. bridge too far if I sued my own federal. government to give me $10 billion" when. he's been grifting the American people.

in broad daylight all this time. I mean, you know, even in on this idea that yes, it's a midterm year, he isn't slowing down his war with Iran. It's a midterm year, that hasn't stopped. him. He's still moving forward with his. with his you know, effort to get. taxpayers now to pay a billion dollars. to fund his ballroom. That's happening. in the election year. So, why this in. particular? Why why would this be any. different than all the other grifts that. he's participated in? Well, I think for. one, it's very hard to navigate the mind.

of Donald Trump. I will say there's. something particularly brazen about. this. This is a direct pocketing of. taxpayer money. And that is a little bit. harder to explain, but I would say that. there have been. parts where the overwhelming thrust of. public opinion has changed things. Look. at what happened on the ground in in. Minneapolis and the Twin Cities that. there were nationwide protests. Kristi. Noem is out of there. You have at least.

the rebranding of what they are trying. to do under the Department of Homeland. Security after people across the country. protested, wrote, and they and helped to. shut down more of these ICE warehouses. than the contracts were completed. And. now with the with Mark Wayne Mullen in. there as the new secretary, a lot of. that entire scheme to have this.

archipelago, this network of ICE. warehouse detention camps is seemingly. on pause. He put that on pause and time. isn't on their side to get that done. So, I do think that Trump in some ways. can be. just delusional about [laughter] public. opinion. You know, he might not realize. how unpopular. how the things that you. very capably and accurately rattled off.

are. But sometimes gravity has a way of. catching up with people, and the sheer. brazenness, the sheer. the the the sheer corruption, frankly, of put of pocketing $10 billion. in taxpayer money in a negotiation. everyone knows the two parties are on. the same side. They needed a way out, and they think, probably mistakenly,

this is it. I mean, I can't imagine a. world where this up stands up to legal. scrutiny because what's to stop a. Democratic president from saying, you know, I'm going to sue the IRS for a. trillion dollars and we'll just, you. know what? Because I'm a nice guy, we'll. just lower it to 500 billion and that'll. be my slush fund where I can pay out, you know, any of my friends or donors or. whoever it is. I can fund the entirety. of Planned Parenthood till the end of. time. I mean, it it it is so nakedly. illegal on its face to just say, "Okay,

I'm going to start at an arbitrary point. where I'm going to attack the federal. government. I'll lower that to a. slightly lower, albeit still arbitrary. amount, claim that as a compromise to my. already arbitrary lawsuit against my own. federal government that I'm a part of, and then just have no guardrails on. where I can give the money is just. insane and I cannot imagine where, whether it's the $10 billion lawsuit. against the IRS or the compromise $1.7. billion slush fund, that any of it will.

stand up to scrutiny because if you look. at it from any perspective, the. Republican lawyers would have a million. things to say if Barack Obama or Joe. Biden just decided to make, with no. guardrails, some slush fund where they. can hand out taxpayer funds to their. friends. Unfortunately, the guardrails had been. norms and practices within the federal. government and that with what Trump has. shown throughout both of his terms is. that's nowhere near enough. The.

guardrail should have been an. independent Justice Department, but an. independent Department was a convention. that when one's ethics attorneys said, "You have to recuse from this, you were. the president of the United States. lawyer, so you have to step aside in. these cases." And that was another story. that broke recently. I believe CNN broke. that story that the ethics lawyer did. advise that and then they fired the. ethics lawyer. course. I think part of.

the challenge. that sometime down the line through the. work of politics, if Democrats get back. in power, what things what had been. norms need to be replaced with laws. That the that no, no matter whoever's in. power, you can't have this self-dealing. through the machinery of the federal. government so you, your cronies, can get. be personally enriched and that your.

that. you can basically use the machinery of. the state as a tool to reward your. friends and to bludgeon your enemies. Perfectly put. We'll leave it there. For. those who are watching right now, if. you'd like to support Adam's work, this. is true legal independent media. I'm. going to put a link to All Rise News. right here on the screen and also in the. post description of this video. Often. times Adam is all over the country. covering this stuff at the location that. it's happening in. I've talked to him in. New York, I've talked to him in.

Tennessee, in Florida. And so, this is. all being done on his own dime. So. again, if you'd like to support. independent media, this is a great way. to do it. Adam, as always, thanks so. much for your time. Thank you, Brian. That was a pleasure. To listen to the audio version of this. episode, click the link right here on. the screen. Make sure to subscribe. And. of course, to see more video content, that subscribe button's on the screen as. well. >> [music].