EPISODE 279: The Case for Trump


In this easy to listen to, charming, and informative episode of “The Bill Walton Show,” host Bill Walton engages with Mercedes Schlapp, former Trump White House Advisor and Matt Schlapp, leader and Chairman of CPAC in a dynamic discussion about the pressing issues facing America today. Together, and with humor, they dig into the upcoming elections, economic priorities, and the shifting political landscape.

Of course, as Trump supporters, the trio delves into critiques of Biden/Harris’ leadership, the importance of economic growth, and why minority communities are increasingly supporting conservative policies. They also highlight the work that CPAC has been doing with the worldwide movements for freedom and liberty.

With optimism, they address concerns about election integrity and the power of respectful discourse. This conversation offers valuable insights into topics shaping the nation’s future—it’s a discussion you won’t want to miss.

Key Takeaways:

  • (00:25) The episode kicks off with Bill Walton likening the show to “Seinfeld,” but instead of “nothing,” it’s a “show about everything,” signaling a deep dive into pressing global issues.
  • (02:10) Mercedes Schlapp addresses the palpable political exhaustion among Americans but rallies for renewed focus and energy with critical elections just weeks away.
    Mercy in Work Mode
  • (02:45) A sharp critique is leveled at Kamala Harris, questioning her competence in articulating economic plans and her ability to connect with everyday Americans.
  • (03:17) Doubt is cast on polls showing Harris with nearly 50% support, suggesting inaccuracies and highlighting concerns over early voting and election integrity.
  • (04:23) Matt Schlapp observes a notable shift of racial minorities, especially those who fled communism, moving toward Trump due to his stances on immigration and economic freedom.
  • (05:31) Bill Walton argues that the Biden-Harris administration has neglected economic growth in favor of social agendas like climate change and diversity, impacting Americans’ prosperity.
  • (07:14) The panel criticizes Harris’s economic speech in Pittsburgh for lacking substance, emphasizing that “inspirational” rhetoric doesn’t address real economic issues.
  • (13:44) A stark contrast is drawn between Republicans adhering to election laws and Democrats allegedly exploiting legal loopholes to gain advantages.
  • (15:58) Mercedes Schlapp raises alarms about potential foreign interference from China and Iran, suggesting they favor Harris to weaken the United States.
  • (16:39) Concerns are voiced about the safety of political figures, noting that Donald Trump has faced serious threats, and calling out the media for insufficient coverage.
  • (19:11) Criticism is directed at Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo for saying they need to “extinguish Trump for good,” warning that such rhetoric is dangerous and divisive.
  • (21:08) Bill Walton connects the U.S. election to a global freedom movement, mentioning Argentina’s Javier Milei and highlighting CPAC’s international efforts to promote democracy.
  • (27:33) The discussion highlights growing support for Trump among Hispanic and Black voters, attributing it to dissatisfaction with economic conditions under current policies.
  • (42:22) Matt Schlapp reflects on Trump’s resilience through past challenges, suggesting it indicates a significant role he is yet to play in shaping America’s future.
  • (46:41) The conversation concludes with optimism about Trump’s unique leadership, expressing confidence that he aligns with crucial issues that will positively impact the nation’s direction.

     

 


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EPISODE 279 TRANSCRIPT

Speaker 1 (00:04):

Welcome to the Bill Walton Show featuring conversations with leaders, entrepreneurs, artists and thinkers. Fresh perspectives on money, culture, politics and human flourishing. Interesting people, interesting things.

Bill Walton (00:25):

Do you remember the show, Seinfeld? Yeah, of course you did, everybody watched Seinfeld, it was fantastic. And the great thing about that show was they promoted it as the show about nothing. And I thought we’d take a riff on that today, and this is a show about everything.

(00:45):

There’s so much going on in the world. We have war, we have elections, we have cultural change. And I couldn’t think of anybody to talk about this more concisely, more interestingly than Mercedes Schlapp and Matt Schlapp. And together we’re sort of ringleaders at CPAC. I guess, Matt, now I’m Vice chairman of CPAC and-

Matt Schlapp (01:08):

No, you’re first Vice Chairman. Nice try.

Mercedes Schlapp (01:13):

And I try to keep you guys all in order. So I feel like my job is the most important, frankly.

Bill Walton (01:19):

Well, I’m trying to evade responsibility. I don’t want to give back … anyway, so, here we are.

Matt Schlapp (01:21):

She has this title of Senior … what is it?

Mercedes Schlapp (01:23):

Fellow.

Matt Schlapp (01:23):

Senior fellow. What does that mean? Doesn’t mean much. So that’s dangerous. We probably need to narrow her title.

Mercedes Schlapp (01:30):

Narrow it.

Bill Walton (01:31):

I have a title at Discovery Institute, the Senior Fellow in the Institute for Morality Wealth and Poverty.

Mercedes Schlapp (01:38):

Ooh.

Matt Schlapp (01:38):

Wow.

Bill Walton (01:39):

Isn’t that great?

Mercedes Schlapp (01:40):

Yeah.

Matt Schlapp (01:40):

Wow.

Bill Walton (01:40):

I have no idea what that means.

Mercedes Schlapp (01:41):

What does that all mean? We’re all thinking the same thing.

Bill Walton (01:45):

So CPAC, everybody knows, we’re probably the leading advocacy group in America, if not the world. In fact, we want to talk about that, about what we’re doing all over the world. So I don’t really know where to start. I mean, you all are deeply engaged in the election. Maybe we ought to start with what’s happening with the Trump campaign, what’s happening with the debate or lack of debates that are coming up? Mercy, you want to take a crack at that?

Mercedes Schlapp (02:10):

Well, yeah. First of all, I think all of us are just feeling exhausted, quite frankly. I think that there is this sense of how can the Democrats and Kamala Harris and her campaign, along with the media just drag us down and make us really feel like, can we get to the end? And I think this is the moment in time that everyone needs to be very focused, get recharged and know that what’s at stake is so serious. And I hear across the board just people saying, “Oh my goodness. It’s like weeks away from the election.” They feel the stress. They feel the stress because they know that our country’s facing this pivotal point. And you look at the fact that, okay, we know Joe Biden was bad, Bill, but Kamala Harris takes bad to a whole new level. I mean, the incompetence, the inability to articulate a plan, to understand even a basic economic plan, her inability to connect and relate to the American people. It’s so obvious and yet I’m racking my brain going, how can she even be getting 48% in these polls or 49% in these polls?

Bill Walton (03:17):

Do you believe the polls? Matt, do you believe them?

Mercedes Schlapp (03:18):

I think the polls are all over the map.

Bill Walton (03:20):

I’m not sure I … I become-

Mercedes Schlapp (03:23):

But even if we don’t believe the polls, what concerns me is early voting, the organization behind Kamala Harris and the Democrats. And of course, always the big issue of election, integrity and what is going to happen in these cities.

Matt Schlapp (03:39):

Polling? [inaudible 00:03:40] fast as I can.

Mercedes Schlapp (03:41):

Whatever you want to take it, yeah.

Matt Schlapp (03:42):

The ballot on polling was just the head-to-head, Harris v Trump. It’s kind of like the centerfold in the old Playboy magazine. Everybody wants to see it.

Bill Walton (03:51):

I just read that, I never looked at this-

Matt Schlapp (03:53):

Yeah, I know, you read the articles.

Bill Walton (03:53):

Yeah, I read the articles.

Matt Schlapp (03:56):

But really the thing about polling, it’s interesting is trends and behind the ballot. I think the ballot question is pretty broken. I think it’s easy to poke holes in it. But beyond that, you have a couple of these trends. And the switch from blue collar, from the fancy country club set for the Republican nominee, Donald Trump is a big shift. Why? What is it? Two-thirds of Americans don’t go to college. I mean, that was a good shift for us from a demographic standpoint.

(04:23):

Then you have the second question, which is we’re the racist party, obviously. Even though the Republican Party was established to end slavery, give former slaves their full civil rights. We voted for civil rights legislation in larger percentages than the Jim Crow Democrats, but somehow CNN and the rest of them have us being the racist party. Well, if we are the racist party, why are racial minorities turning towards Donald Trump? Why? Because they fled communism, didn’t work there, and they’re seeing the effects of an open border and communism in this country. And they’re like, we don’t like this. It’s not working for us. So that’s the trending I see in polling. So it’s hard for me to look at those trends and see a loss for Donald Trump.

Bill Walton (05:03):

Well, here’s the thing, and I’m seeing because I’m the economics guy and I don’t see that the Democrats from day one of Biden’s administration, Kamala’s administration. Remember Biden said just this week that he delegated everything to Kamala and kamala did a great job and everything he delegated to her.

Matt Schlapp (05:20):

And she was the last person in the Oval office on every big decision, and they never disagreed.

Bill Walton (05:24):

Oh, and the Afghanistan, leaving all that stuff behind. She made that call.

(05:31):

They’ve never been for economic growth. From day one they’ve been talking about climate change, they’ve been talking about diversity, equity, and inclusion. They’ve been talking about all these social issues and their frankly Marxist agenda. And this is the party of Davos, this is the party of you will not own anything and be happy with it. They don’t want people driving cars. So what they’re doing is not just inflation, but they’re shrinking our well-being through consumer choices and things like that. And now they’re [inaudible 00:06:07] saying, oh, growth, growth, growth. They don’t have a single page in their playbook that has to do with growth.

Mercedes Schlapp (06:12):

It’s about forcing behavioral change in the individual, right? And how you have to include pronouns when you’re talking to another person or you have to drive an electric vehicle or you can’t use your gas stove. And it’s all this regulation after regulation after regulation, all in the name, in this case, of climate change or gender ideology or gender equality. And it really is … I go back to this word, exhausting. I think the American people are simply tired. They go to the grocery store, they’re not getting their money’s worth, the prices are up 20%. It’s unaffordable living. And what’s interesting is to watch Kamala Harris give a speech on the economy where she’s literally running away from Joe Biden, she is the one saying, “Well, I mean the cost of living is too high.” Well, guess what? You’re in charge right now, lady. And so is Joe Biden. Well, we’re not sure if she’s really in charge.

Bill Walton (07:12):

She has no idea about how to do anything.

Matt Schlapp (07:14):

Did you listen to that speech the other day?

Bill Walton (07:17):

I can’t listen to-

Mercedes Schlapp (07:17):

It’s literally like she’s running against Joe Biden.

Matt Schlapp (07:18):

So she spoke at the Detroit Economic Club of Pittsburgh.

Mercedes Schlapp (07:21):

Yeah, the Pittsburgh.

Matt Schlapp (07:22):

Excuse me, the Economic Club of Pittsburgh and Detroit’s a famous one. I didn’t know every town had an economic club, but apparently they all have them now. And they’re perfect backdrops for Kamala Harris as they try to give her this kind of credential that she knows something about the economy. And the number one word I heard out of that speech was inspirational. She had a speech on the economy, no hard math, no hard facts. It was just, shouldn’t we feel great about the fact that we’re going to be a great country and turn it around?

Bill Walton (07:53):

Mistake. She thought it was inspirational or the reporters?

Matt Schlapp (07:56):

No, she kept using the word, inspirational.

Bill Walton (07:57):

Oh, she thought she was being inspirational.

Matt Schlapp (07:58):

But that was the number one word in an economic speech and I thought that kind of tells us everything. She wasn’t at a church, she wasn’t at a high school. She was talking to businessmen and women in Pittsburgh, a really important city. And her number one word was inspirational.

Bill Walton (08:14):

Well, the good thing about this election is we’ve moved the battle onto the economic playing field. And that’s great. Because they don’t know anything about economic growth, nothing. In fact, they’re against it. So now to watch them try to play this game they’ve never played, I think it’s payback time.

Matt Schlapp (08:30):

I never thought about this before until this moment. But when I was young and Jimmy Carter was president and he was wearing a sweater and carrying his own bag and talking to us about how America had to downgrade her expectations because we weren’t going to be this great country anymore. We had this thing called malaise, it was kind of a word that he used in politics to say, “Look, we all feel bad about things because things are bad.” And then we had this thing called stagflation, which you can explain to me what that is. But that low economic growth, high inflation, if I remember correct, high interest rates. And his solution to that, if I remember correctly, was basically his version of the Green New Deal. We’re going to drive 55, we’re going to use a lot less energy, but there’s nothing we can do to make OPEC in other places.

Bill Walton (09:10):

Don’t forget the thermostats.

Matt Schlapp (09:11):

That’s right.

Bill Walton (09:12):

Turn them down in the winter.

Matt Schlapp (09:14):

Below 65, I think.

Bill Walton (09:16):

Yeah, maybe he was in the sweater business.

Matt Schlapp (09:18):

But I mean, my point is … and I’ll close this loop. But what came first, the chicken or the egg? Were they happy about the stagflation in the malaise because then they could push their energy austerity? Or was-

Bill Walton (09:32):

I think that was a different Democrat Party.

Matt Schlapp (09:33):

Or was that the fact that he was just trying to respond to it? But it’s interesting how it’s always the same policies, which is, it’s kind of our fault. We have to change our way of living because we consume too much or we’re destroying the planet.

Mercedes Schlapp (09:48):

But do you think … this is actually a question, I want to hear from Bill on this. But Bill, do you think that the American people, are they just accepting it? I mean, what percentage of American people-

Matt Schlapp (09:58):

I don’t think so.

Mercedes Schlapp (09:58):

Are just going with the flow and saying, “You know what? We’re going to just accept. Because we have to save our planet and because we should respect what Kamala Harris is saying.” How many of those people are willing to just go with the flow as opposed to those saying, “I’m going to have a resistance. I’m not doing this.”

Bill Walton (10:14):

Well, I can’t put a percentage on it. But I think a big, big, big percentage of Americans, I think majority get that they’ve never been about growth during this term. And they just keep seeing their life getting worse and they’re not hearing her say what she’s going to do different from what she’s already been doing. So I think the wins that are back on this one. I really do.

Matt Schlapp (10:37):

You say that, but I think you should break that down. So they don’t believe in growth and we haven’t had growth. But they’re getting the downside of inflation.

Mercedes Schlapp (10:42):

Totally getting the downside.

Matt Schlapp (10:43):

So there’s growth in some things, but it’s the wrong growth. There’s no economic activity, right?

Bill Walton (10:50):

Well, inflation you can’t eat. No, I mean that’s ephemeral. I’m not sure I understand your question.

Matt Schlapp (10:59):

My only point is this, which is, sometimes when you have a lot of economic activity, they concern that you’re overheat the economy and that you could see some inflation. They have the opposite. Which is there’s no economic activity happening in this country. The only thing we’ve actually seen over the course of the last three and a half years is heightened COVID spending, which they never got rid of. And then these new programs to make us feel better about whether it’s COVID, this or that. It’s all like federal government fueled, build back better, inflation injected-

Mercedes Schlapp (11:31):

Yeah, Kamala’s making the argument that the demons in the room are the corporations because they’re making so much profit and it’s not getting down to the little guy. So that’s kind of her angle. And then she’s like, “That’s why we got to boost up the corporate tax to 28%.” And then she’s saying that with those tax increases, that that’s how she’s going to pay for what? More federal government spending. So this goes back to their solution is always about spending. I mean, Republicans are guilty about spending as well. But the mere fact is it’s demonized corporations, which we know that if … in fact, there’s higher taxes, that’s going to go straight to the consumer. But I don’t know. I mean, Bill is the business guru here, so that’s my take.

Bill Walton (12:13):

I think you’re right. I don’t think people are buying it. They’re just not experiencing in their personal life that things are getting better, they’re experiencing, it’s getting worse. And I don’t think you can put enough lipstick on that pig to make it palatable. But then we know that Democrats live and breathe 24/7, 365 days a year on the mechanics of elections. The thing that’s different between them and us is that they care all about power and making sure they get and hold power. And the way you do that is by making sure all the election laws and all the different ways we conduct these elections tilt in their favor.

Matt Schlapp (12:56):

Or don’t follow them.

Bill Walton (12:57):

Or don’t follow them. I don’t want to relitigate 2020, but I do know that I don’t trust what’s going to happen next. If we have a close election, I fear that we’re going to watch what happened last time. That we get a Republican potential winner at 7:00 at night, and then all of a sudden by 7:00 in the morning they’ve lost.

Mercedes Schlapp (13:19):

Yeah.

Matt Schlapp (13:19):

Well, let me ask you a question. If Elon Musk during his amazing entrepreneurial growth spurt with all of these really interesting companies, did he have to follow the laws more carefully back when he was the fair haired child of the left and vehicles? Or does he have to be more careful today, now that he’s their number one arch enemy? I mean, I think I know what the answer is.

Bill Walton (13:44):

That question answers itself, Matt.

Matt Schlapp (13:45):

So the same thing is true in elections. So Democrats spend all their time figuring out when they have to follow the law and when they don’t. And what they’ll get away with and what the courts will shy away from prosecuting them over, that’s the game that they play. Republicans do not play that game because they know they have to follow the laws, they have to be probably well away from even getting close to the line. And so where our circle of operations is so much more narrow, and so we jam tons of money at a very few options where they have double, triple, quadruple, ten times the number of options and things they can do.

Mercedes Schlapp (14:25):

Options and lawyers. Their legal team much more organized.

Matt Schlapp (14:28):

They never get prosecuted.

Bill Walton (14:29):

How are you guys feeling about the Trump campaign and the RNC?

Matt Schlapp (14:34):

I’ll jump in here first. I find the Trump campaign to be amazing because Donald Trump is this amazing historical figure. It centers around him. He’s a nonstop motion machine. He’s a nonstop communicator. He’s something we’ve never seen before in our politics. And I think that’s the number one attribute of the campaign, which includes the RNC.

(14:59):

The problem when you have that kind of heat at the center of something like that, it does kind of drown out a lot of the other more standard additional activities that a presidential campaign would normally do. The other thing to remember is that the left a long time ago doesn’t find salvation politically within a campaign or the DNC. They have a plethora of very well-funded operations on the outside-

Mercedes Schlapp (15:24):

Outside.

Matt Schlapp (15:25):

Including on digital and data and technology. And I think we’re Lilliputians compared to them and those efforts, and we’ve got to scale up quickly.

Mercedes Schlapp (15:33):

I would say with the RNC and with Michael Watley there, he understands the legal component of it. I think they’ve had more legal victories this time around than before. They’re more aware of what is happening on the ground. I think, for example, this going after these, getting non-citizens off the voter roll. Let’s just start there and we’ve had some victories in that area. I will say that-

Matt Schlapp (15:58):

But when we lose, it’s really the leftist judges.

Mercedes Schlapp (16:00):

But you got to also understand, there is foreign interference, foreign adversaries interfering in our election, as well. I mean, this is part of it. China, through social media, through TikTok and Iran, the Russia, they’re going to be engaged in this disinformation campaign, as well. And guess who their candidate is? Their candidate is Kamala Harris. They want weakness in the US, that is the one thing that they want for sure. And when you have Iran that basically wants to assassinate Donald Trump. Let’s think about where we are in our society right now that President Trump has had two assassination attempts and yet it’s almost like in the media for a day and then gone.

Matt Schlapp (16:39):

Two that we know of.

Mercedes Schlapp (16:41):

Where are we in this country that we have to understand that our presidential candidate is literally, his life is in danger every single day?

Bill Walton (16:52):

Well, yeah, I mean it’s sort of in the oxygen now, it’s in the water we drink.

Matt Schlapp (16:58):

It’s broader than that. So they’re trying to decapitate this whole effort to highlight the fact that the election of 2020 was incredibly dubious. Everything we’re being told from our federal government, we’re scrutinizing from healthcare to food to what they’re saying about Iran needing a nuclear weapon, blah, blah, blah. And then we read about the fact that friends of ours who are on the Supreme Court, their lives are now at risk because they know … the bad guys know that if you took out Donald Trump, who’s the replacement? I don’t know the answer. I really don’t know the answer.

(17:34):

If you took out two, three, four good constitutionalists on the Supreme Court and the Democrats had a majority in the Senate, they’d fill those slots in five minutes. They’d go to all the funerals, they’d weep. But we would never be able to recover from that. So when they say that we’re deplorable, and then they say that we’re election deniers, and then they say that we’re a threat to democracy, this is all intentional propaganda so that when a tragedy like that happens, they can say, “Yeah, it’s too bad they shouldn’t have been killed. But they were a threat to democracy. They were destroying the rights of women.” I mean, it’s a very intentional thing. Now, I’m not accusing … I don’t know who’s beyond the violence here. But I do think they’re triggering people that it’s somehow okay to act in a violent way. Now we do the opposite when we talk. Almost in every time we give a speech, we’re like as angry as we are, you can’t allow that to trigger you to do something that would be violent. You never really hear that from-

Bill Walton (18:40):

I can’t think of a time where we had … I mean, they talk about the right-wing nut jobs. I can’t think of a single assassination attempt from somebody on the right trying to get somebody in the left, at least in our lifetime. I mean, I can’t go back to 18. I don’t know whether McKinley or somebody like that. I don’t know what those politics were, but I don’t think our side does that.

Mercedes Schlapp (19:03):

No. Well, the problem is, it’s coming from even the Secretary of Commerce. Biden’s, Secretary of Commerce, Raimondo-

Bill Walton (19:11):

Gina?

Mercedes Schlapp (19:11):

Yes.

Matt Schlapp (19:11):

Gina Raimondo.

Mercedes Schlapp (19:12):

Raimondo. Who basically said, we need to extinguish Trump for good. I mean, this is the Secretary of Commerce, her deal should be like, how do we increase trade? What do we do to help businesses in the US? No, no, no. She is so politically biased and destructive in my opinion, to use that terminology of, extinguish Trump for good. This is a language that you have-

Matt Schlapp (19:37):

But she is from Rhode Island, it shouldn’t even really be a state. It’s not tall enough for the ride.

Mercedes Schlapp (19:40):

But I mean, Harris’s people have used this rhetoric language over and over and over again. They want to demonize Trump, they want to make him like he is a criminal, he has no place in American politics or even in American society, quite frankly. And it’s to an extreme. And I just think that that dangerous rhetoric is why you have seen these nut jobs come out and try to kill Donald Trump.

Matt Schlapp (20:04):

Yeah, I do too. I think their language has been incredibly purposeful. And I just think we should all be very, very much on this problem, which is if they did take out a couple of Supreme Court justices, if they did take out Donald Trump, which I think he’s come … I mean, come on. Can’t even use the word close, it’s a millimeter.

Mercedes Schlapp (20:24):

Yeah.

Matt Schlapp (20:25):

And I really don’t think there’s an alternative to Donald Trump, apparent. I mean, somebody would rise up. But I mean he’s a very unique person and we really need him to fulfill, which I think is his destiny, to continue to disrupt the swamp, to continue to scare the hell out of the [inaudible 00:20:42].

Bill Walton (20:41):

So everything comes back to this election.

Matt Schlapp (20:43):

It does.

Bill Walton (20:44):

But we talk about it here, myopically United States, our election. But as we’ve seen with CPAC, there’s a freedom movement worldwide. And Milei of Argentina just gave a tremendous speech at the United Nations yesterday about the pullout quote here is long live freedom, dammit.

Mercedes Schlapp (21:08):

Yeah.

Bill Walton (21:08):

I don’t know whether he did this in Spanish or what.

Matt Schlapp (21:12):

No, he speaks Spanish. He’s not an English speaker.

Bill Walton (21:13):

I know, he spoke at CPAC last-

Mercedes Schlapp (21:15):

They’ll say [Spanish 00:21:16]. That’s how he says it.

Matt Schlapp (21:18):

What does that mean? We had a Cuban here.

Mercedes Schlapp (21:20):

Exactly what Bill said.

Matt Schlapp (21:22):

Yeah, yeah. Well, I don’t think [Spanish 00:21:24] means dammit, but I’ll let you get away with that.

Mercedes Schlapp (21:26):

Well it’s pretty [inaudible 00:21:27].

Bill Walton (21:27):

We can get a little gloomy about this attack on Trump and our people. But we got to remember, it’s not just for us that we would need to win this election. It’s people all over the world.

Mercedes Schlapp (21:38):

Yes.

Bill Walton (21:38):

I mean, you see it in people’s eyes and what they say. And where have we held conferences? We’ve been in New Mexico. We’ve been-

Matt Schlapp (21:45):

Well, let’s start with we’re going to be in Argentina, when? Do you have a-

Mercedes Schlapp (21:47):

In early December.

Matt Schlapp (21:50):

And one of Milei’s advisors, breathlessly was trying to get ahold of us at CPAC the other day because Elon Musk was coming to Argentina.

Mercedes Schlapp (21:59):

Right.

Matt Schlapp (21:59):

And they’re friends. And he really wants Elon Musk to get involved in this freedom movement as you’re describing it, associated with CPAC. So that’s exciting. We just came back from Mexico City with our second CPAC Mexico, which was great, with Eduardo Verastegui. And we’re going to be going to Australia and Japan.

Bill Walton (22:19):

What are you hearing these people say when you go?

Mercedes Schlapp (22:23):

So this one woman came up to me in Mexico and said, “When the US gets the sniffles, Latin, America catches pneumonia.” And I thought that was really telling. They are very concerned, very, very, very concerned of a Kamala Harris presidency. They really believe that Donald Trump can help in basically keeping China at bay, which is obviously investing a lot of money in Latin America. And remember, there are backdoor neighbors. If we’re succeeding, they’re succeeding. And they’re very concerned about really the moral decay and the cultural decay, economic decay of the United States under Kamala Harris.

(23:11):

So look, they’re nervous. And I can’t even tell you how many people came out to us and were like, “We’re praying for your country. We really need Donald Trump to win.” Because they themselves have lost their countries to socialism, to communism. We’ve seen obviously the destruction of Venezuela. You go country by country, Nicaragua, places like Honduras and Guatemala, where the communists are in charge. And then these resistance freedom fighters, they’re like, we are losing our freedoms quicker than quick and this can happen in the US.

Bill Walton (23:43):

But here’s the thing, and I don’t think most Americans, because we never pay attention to foreign policy. It’s been terrible with Biden and Kamala Harris. The State Department for example-

Mercedes Schlapp (23:54):

Oh yeah.

Bill Walton (23:55):

They have gay pride flags at every embassy around the world, the whole social agenda, the DEI agenda is on display there. They’re pushing it. The climate agenda is what they’re pushing. And if you’re in Africa or you’re in South America or you’re in a developing country, you don’t want the climate agenda being foisted on you because you’re going to pay the price. I mean, the best way for people to get out of their economic poverty is through economic growth, and that comes from fossil fuels. So we’re pushing these things which hurt them. And yet we turn around and act like United States is going to be … we’re promoting democracy. Well, we’re not. We’re promoting something very different and I think that’s what people are feeling. I don’t think we stand for what we used to stand for in the world.

Matt Schlapp (24:41):

So we all read in school about-

Bill Walton (24:44):

That was my speech.

Matt Schlapp (24:45):

I liked it.

Mercedes Schlapp (24:45):

I love it.

Bill Walton (24:45):

Okay.

Matt Schlapp (24:47):

We all learned about evil colonialism.

Bill Walton (24:50):

Yeah.

Matt Schlapp (24:50):

Now we can put that to the side as to whether that was a force for good or bad. I think spreading Christianity and Western culture is a positive thing. That being said, there was this idea that these powers maybe became corrupt with power and exploited local people and such. It’s the left that has dictated this kind of mantra in our textbooks. But it’s the left when they get political power in America. You know what they do, Bill? They are Neocolonialist. They make all these people put up this flag and they make all these people abandon their faith and use these pronouns. They make all these people adopt all of these policy positions. And they see absolutely no hypocrisy in those two things existing at the same time. It never was about respecting the individual culture. It’s about destroying the attempt to Westernize or Christianize that culture and replacing it with this thing, this morass that they’re trying to push in our country and everywhere else.

Bill Walton (25:46):

The President of Hungary is Balazsar.

Mercedes Schlapp (25:48):

Oh, Orbán, Viktor Orbán.

Matt Schlapp (25:49):

Viktor Orbán, yeah.

Bill Walton (25:51):

Viktor Orbán. He’s been demonized six ways to Sunday. Not just by the United States, but by the EU, Brussels. They have everything aimed at them. What’s Brussels trying to force on Hungary? I mean, I can answer it.

Matt Schlapp (26:06):

So it’s just like what the Biden and Harris administration are pushing here with the UN because it’s in our country, which we see it pushing here. The EU is run by a Republican Party, a version of the Republican Party, a version of the Tory Party. All of these center-right parties in these countries, they’re basically the same. They’re feckless, they want to do a little bit less, they want to fight-

Bill Walton (26:31):

You didn’t mean that as a compliment when you said Republican Party?

Mercedes Schlapp (26:33):

Well they ally themselves to the [inaudible 00:26:35]-

Matt Schlapp (26:35):

No, so the EU is being run by a center-right party. You wouldn’t know it with everything they do. But that center-right party would rather align itself and does with the socialists and the communists to keep their power. Than to align themselves with people like Viktor Orbán or Giorgia Meloni or Donald Trump.

Bill Walton (26:53):

Italy.

Matt Schlapp (26:54):

Yeah, she’s the Prime Minister of Italy who just yesterday she’s getting even … as she builds up her political power, you’ll see her voice be stronger. And she said yesterday, “No more illegals are coming to Italy, and when they do, they’re going to be deported.” That was the most aggressive statement she’s made in immigration, is she consolidates her power around her.

(27:13):

So this is one of the facts that I don’t think the American people understand. Those Republicans who get discouraged that the Republican Party seems to give in a lot, they should understand the Republican Party is the best version of that center-right party on the globe. Most of these other countries have worse weaker white flag versions of their center-right party. So what they’re now doing is creating new parties. The Republican Party should send a thank-you note to Donald Trump for running for president within the Republican Party. If he had decided to create his own party, the Republican Party would be no longer.

Bill Walton (27:50):

Let me think about that. I may have liked that alternative.

Mercedes Schlapp (27:53):

There’s [inaudible 00:27:56].

Bill Walton (27:56):

My view of the world, we just did a show in education is you can’t reform these bossified institutions. You really need to just start over with something fresh.

Matt Schlapp (28:05):

Like they do in Las Vegas with the old casino and hotels. It’s like-

Mercedes Schlapp (28:09):

Tear them down.

Matt Schlapp (28:09):

To watch the whole thing, timber. We need some of that. We’re doing a new grand.

Bill Walton (28:14):

Well, I do believe that, though. I don’t think we’re going to reform K-12 education, for example. I think we need to figure out ways that people can create their new ways to educate people. And I think that the Republican Party may have been one of those institutions that is badly in need of disappearing in favor of the Trump party.

Mercedes Schlapp (28:33):

Well-

Bill Walton (28:33):

That sounds like we’ve gone full dig.

Mercedes Schlapp (28:35):

I think-

Bill Walton (28:35):

It’s got to be something besides Trump, he’s a name.

Mercedes Schlapp (28:37):

I’m about adding numbers to the party, so I think the MAGA movement is critical. I think obviously what we do at CPAC is critical. And then we bring in Republicans based on what issues they care about. But the problem is you got to have a spine. What I don’t want is I don’t want these spineless people who just cave in on everything, who they’re fine with let’s use puberty blockers on our children. It’s totally fine, that’s not child abuse. Or yeah, it’s okay for all these illegals to come in, but there’s 300,000 children who are missing, who have crossed the border that are being trafficked, that are being drugged. That the Biden administration and the Harris administration, they’ve lost track of.

(29:18):

And so my thing is you’ve got to stand for things and you got to stand for ending human trafficking and ending sex trafficking and protecting children. This is protecting our own children from this indoctrination of the crazy left, this has been coming for decades. This was penetrating our society for quite some time. And they have, just like you said, hijacked, taken over these academic institutions. Hijacked, taken over our TV, Hollywood, social media, and you got to push back and say no. And that’s the thing-

Matt Schlapp (29:49):

But that’s-

Mercedes Schlapp (29:49):

I wish more Republicans would definitely stand up for, how do we best protect our children?

Matt Schlapp (29:54):

But that’s the problem, which is everything you described that the left is doing. We just have to make sure that we’re not complicit in it because we refuse to use our power. And the one mistake the Republican Party has made enduringly since Newt Gingrich failed, I guess you would say since Newt Gingrich’s failure. Is we don’t want to use the one power we have, which is the power of the purse. We don’t want to use it because we feel like it will damage our brand and that we will-

Mercedes Schlapp (30:20):

So should we use it?

Bill Walton (30:20):

Can I put a fine point?

Mercedes Schlapp (30:20):

Or are you saying should we use it or not?

Bill Walton (30:22):

What we’re talking about is the House of Representatives-

Matt Schlapp (30:25):

Yes.

Mercedes Schlapp (30:25):

Yeah.

Bill Walton (30:26):

Approves the budget.

Matt Schlapp (30:27):

And the Senate.

Bill Walton (30:27):

Well, the house is basically the real driver.

Matt Schlapp (30:30):

They start it.

Bill Walton (30:31):

Okay. So the house could actually put a lock on the money that goes to all this bad stuff.

Matt Schlapp (30:36):

Yes, yes. Or they could pick their battle. How about you say one thing? So Mercy brings up the fact that a lot of Americans don’t know that 300,000, at a minimum, pretty conservative estimate, children have been lost during the Biden-Harris years because of the open border and the Gotaways and the mules and everything we’ve read about with the border. We’ve never had a spending fight with the Department of Homeland Security over the fact that they’ve lost 300 kids in our society. You’d have to say conservatively, a majority of them aren’t in beautiful loving situations. A majority of them are probably in desperate situations in our own country. How did that help that kid? Their public comments are, oh, we’re so tolerant and we’re so accepting. Where they’re destroying the lives of hundreds of thousands of kids. We’ve never had a showdown fight over funding the Department of Homeland Security. We haven’t even shut down the government over the open border. To me that’s the real travesty.

Bill Walton (31:34):

Let’s talk about the open border, let’s circle back to where we started. Open border, 20 million, possibly, 30 million illegals, not US citizens. Jim Agresti and Cleta-

Matt Schlapp (31:48):

What was the number you used, Bill?

Bill Walton (31:50):

20, 30 million-

Matt Schlapp (31:51):

Yeah, yeah, that’s probably-

Bill Walton (31:51):

Coming in.

Matt Schlapp (31:53):

More than the 12, for sure.

Bill Walton (31:54):

Jim Agresti and Cleta Mitchell were here and we were talking about it. They think as many as two to three million of the non-US citizens are going to vote in this election. Thoughts? Do you agree? I mean, what do we-

Matt Schlapp (32:09):

We were just on the phone pulling into your driveway on the way here. By the way, we parked in the driveway, sorry if that breaks any house rules. Sarah is parked in. But we’re just talking to someone, I won’t mention her name because when people talk to us, they get in trouble. But the-

Bill Walton (32:28):

No sources revealed here.

Matt Schlapp (32:29):

But the only good thing is that this cycle, we have a much better handle on who is illegal and on the rules. In some cases, as you said, we’ve already gone to court, maybe we’ve won, maybe we’ve lost. We have the ability because of early voting transparency in some of these states to know immediately, as soon as next week if some of these people are voting. So it’s a perfect moment for the conservative movement in the Republican Party to stop bitching, stop complaining and do. So we’ll actually have facts that demonstrate that illegal people are voting or we won’t. And then what are we going to do about it?

Bill Walton (33:08):

Yeah, that’s my question. What do we do? I mean, what’s their line of action?

Matt Schlapp (33:11):

Well, the immediate line of action is you have to run to court in these jurisdictions.

Mercedes Schlapp (33:15):

Yes.

Matt Schlapp (33:16):

I agree with Mercy that we are very high on the RNC chairman, Michael Whatley, he’s a very competent guy. Why am I high on him? Well, he went to Notre Dame. Okay, so I’ve got bias.

Mercedes Schlapp (33:25):

Bias.

Bill Walton (33:26):

Enough said.

Mercedes Schlapp (33:27):

You’re so biased.

Matt Schlapp (33:27):

But he’s also a very smart lawyer, he went to law school with Amy Coney Barrett. His whole background in politics is fighting these types of fights. So we have the right general on the field to attack this illegal voting. Now the question is, will the judges do their job? And what we learned about judges is … and Mike Davis brings this up at Article III Project all the time. These judges are completely political 90% of the time.

Mercedes Schlapp (33:51):

Yes.

Matt Schlapp (33:52):

They have to feel comfortable in their country club and in their church and at the kids’ school when they do their job. And if they feel like a little queasy in their stomach and someone snubbed them because they did a tough ruling, you have a lesser likelihood that they’ll do the right thing. I think we have done a very good job, much better job of making people understand that this illegal voting problem is not a Donald Trump conspiracy theory. It is a real problem in our elections.

Mercedes Schlapp (34:23):

Well, and George Soros, they came out with a new project.

Matt Schlapp (34:25):

Yes, they did.

Mercedes Schlapp (34:28):

And the new project is to naturalize immigrants as quickly as possible so that they can vote in these swing states. So we have to understand that that mentality of saying how can we quickly change the demographics of America having immigrants going from this state or the other state? Look, it’s purposeful. It’s purposeful. And I think what’s sad is when you’re using the immigration system to basically cause political upheaval. When we were in Mexico, we saw truly how that country has turned into a uniparty. Where they have-

Matt Schlapp (35:05):

You’re right.

Mercedes Schlapp (35:06):

The Morena Party, and I remember I was listening to the radio because we were on this long trip going out of Mexico City. And it was, I’m not kidding you, Bill, every other commercial was about the Morena Party and how much they’ve done for the Mexican people. Then they would have the outgoing President saying how much he’s done for you. And you know what they do is they basically pay … I’m not saying this happens here in the US. But they pay for their votes, they pretty much say, “Here’s your money.”

Matt Schlapp (35:36):

Oh, that happens in the US.

Mercedes Schlapp (35:37):

Well, they’re paying for your vote. You know what’s happened to the conservatives? The conservatives have to run in this Morena Party because the traditional parties that they used to have in Mexico have disintegrated. They’ve lost power. So the Morena Party is basically gaining so much power and now the president is of course looking to, guess what? Reform the judiciary system.

Matt Schlapp (36:03):

They always do.

Mercedes Schlapp (36:04):

That’s always the goal, right? Once you get the judges, once you get-

Bill Walton (36:07):

Reform.

Mercedes Schlapp (36:08):

Reform.

Bill Walton (36:08):

What a word, reform.

Mercedes Schlapp (36:09):

But we’ve seen this in Brazil.

Bill Walton (36:10):

It’s a accordion, right? You mean anything.

Mercedes Schlapp (36:12):

With Lula in charge in Brazil, what did they do?

Bill Walton (36:15):

Yeah, reform.

Mercedes Schlapp (36:15):

The ones with the superpower are those Supreme Court justices. Same thing with Mexico. You get the justice system and then you basically are in control of all three branches of government. At that point, it’s very hard for what you would say for a conservative group or a center right group to recover.

Matt Schlapp (36:33):

Go back to what Bill said earlier in the conversation, which is one of the very special aspects we get to see because of this special CPAC global … it’s not global, international effort that we’re undertaking is there are millions more of us than there are of them. The only way they win in these countries is by cheating and by using law fare and by breaking the rules or recreating the rules. It’s the only way they win in all these countries. Every coup, every communist coup, you know this, it’s like less than 10%. They have a real plan, they’re better at planning than we are. We have the majority of the people here, we have the majority of people overseas. This is … if you like J. R. R. Tolkien, this is the epic battle of the five armies. This is like everyone coming together. Over the next couple of years, we are either going to win or we are going to lose.

Mercedes Schlapp (37:25):

Or we go underground.

Matt Schlapp (37:26):

If we lose in this country, it will be simply because too many of us had too much to lose. And we just played as you never want to do in tennis, not to lose. If we play not to lose, we’re all going to be in boxcars and in jail cells. I believe that the American people are going to stand up to this challenge. But it’s a live ball and we’re going to find out over the course of the next couple of years, we don’t win this election. And if what we fear happens after this election, the whole world, it’s going to be like dominoes. They were right about the domino theory. Different from what they thought it was going to be. But they were going to destroy … the domino theory wasn’t going to be about a war to destroy America, it was going to be about carving her out from the middle.

Bill Walton (38:10):

Well, it’s the enemy within.

Mercedes Schlapp (38:12):

Yes.

Matt Schlapp (38:12):

Yes, that’s what it was.

Bill Walton (38:13):

It’s the enemy within and it’s changing people’s ideas. And once you’ve changed people’s ideas, you win.

Matt Schlapp (38:19):

Get their kids, get their kids.

Mercedes Schlapp (38:19):

Get their kids.

(38:20):

But let’s be real, we’ve got Chinese nationals in this country that have come in through the border. I mean, we have seen the terrorists have come into this border, as well. There is so much unknown right now of what can happen within the United States. And I don’t want to terrify people, but I think people have to be very realistic as to where we are right now in this country. And we are, I believe, setting ourselves up to be in a very weakened position as a nation.

Matt Schlapp (38:47):

So can I tell you something? We went to this Johnny Cash unveiling and we saw our good friends from Arkansas. Johnny Cash was from Arkansas, a lot of people don’t know that. And that’s how I like to say it. And Johnny Cash is very important to our family because his music is amazing.

Bill Walton (39:03):

So, you’re from Kansas and you’re claiming Johnny Cash.

Matt Schlapp (39:06):

Well, I’m saying-

Bill Walton (39:10):

Okay, all right, I just want to point that out.

Matt Schlapp (39:13):

Arkansas, they just say it wrong on [inaudible 00:39:14]-

Mercedes Schlapp (39:14):

He wishes Johnny Cash was from Kansas, okay?

Bill Walton (39:15):

Okay, all right.

Matt Schlapp (39:15):

I think everybody-

Bill Walton (39:15):

I do too.

Matt Schlapp (39:15):

Everybody wants to a little piece of Johnny Cash.

Mercedes Schlapp (39:15):

Well you’ve got Dwight Eisenhower, so that’s-

Bill Walton (39:15):

I want it from Indiana.

Matt Schlapp (39:15):

Yeah.

Bill Walton (39:17):

So, anyway, I rudely interrupted.

Matt Schlapp (39:19):

I’m trying to think of the great musician from Indiana. Boy, I can’t think of one.

Bill Walton (39:22):

Hoagy Carmichael.

Matt Schlapp (39:23):

Okay, fair enough.

Bill Walton (39:24):

Cole Porter.

Matt Schlapp (39:25):

That’s cool. Cole Porter was from Indiana?

Bill Walton (39:27):

Yeah.

Matt Schlapp (39:27):

Seriously?

Bill Walton (39:28):

Yes. Bill Vance was from Indiana.

Matt Schlapp (39:28):

[inaudible 00:39:32].

Bill Walton (39:31):

Oh yeah.

Matt Schlapp (39:32):

Okay. All right. I’m learning.

Bill Walton (39:35):

John Mellencamp, although, I don’t like him or his music.

Matt Schlapp (39:38):

And Mike Pence. So I mean you got a lot going for Indiana.

(39:42):

So we go to this statue unveiling, we see our great friends and they used to live here. And one of them worked for me at the White House for President Bush. And they said we walked the mall, I felt like I was in a whole other city. It didn’t look the same, it didn’t feel the same. And I’ll go ahead and say the racial thing, first of all, they were the only white people, which was different from when they were here 15 years ago. And they said they didn’t care that much about the diversity of races as much as everyone seemed like they didn’t live there. Like it was not just like a tourist thing, but they just said it was a very strange experience.

(40:23):

And I was like, this is what I think the American people need to do. You’re in these big cities, open up your eyes, open up your ears. Things aren’t right. You know it’s not right. The inner ticking of your being is telling you, things aren’t right. Start to believe it. Maybe it’s intuition, maybe it’s spiritual. I don’t know what that is, but things aren’t right. And so if things aren’t right, you should start to think about what you would do if things get worse. And that’s how I think a lot of people in this country are living. People who aren’t even that political are saying, I go to the supermarket, it doesn’t seem right. Why does everything cost so much? Why did we have periods of time when we had empty shelves? Why does it take so long to order something?

Mercedes Schlapp (41:04):

And it’s why I think a lot of the black voters, I was down in Miami really talking to so many different Hispanic voters as well. I do think that there is a shift. I think they’ve had it. I think that they are like, I cannot afford to live in America. I cannot afford to buy a house. I cannot afford my rent. And it’s just taken this incredible toll on these communities. I think that’s why there is going to be a shift. The question again will be, who can get out the vote? And who can take it to [inaudible 00:41:32]-

Bill Walton (41:32):

Of course, this is why I think Trump’s going to win.

Mercedes Schlapp (41:33):

Yeah, well they got to go out and vote.

Bill Walton (41:36):

What percentage of young black men does Trump now have? Up from what?

Matt Schlapp (41:40):

It’s funny because-

Bill Walton (41:41):

What percentage of Hispanic men does Trump have? Up from what?

Matt Schlapp (41:46):

Maybe a majority.

Bill Walton (41:47):

Yeah. I mean, they’re big shifts.

Matt Schlapp (41:48):

And double digits with black men, anyway. But now of course the polls came out this week that showed him tied nationwide and giving 7% of the African-American vote. So to me, once again, we go back to polling-

Bill Walton (42:00):

7%?

Matt Schlapp (42:00):

Yeah, which I think is-

Bill Walton (42:01):

That’s all?

Mercedes Schlapp (42:01):

That’s nothing.

Matt Schlapp (42:03):

About what he got last time.

Mercedes Schlapp (42:04):

No, he got 9% last time.

Matt Schlapp (42:06):

So it’s less, so-

Bill Walton (42:07):

It’s a super low number.

Matt Schlapp (42:08):

The point is this, which is that if he’s tied nationwide with that number of African-Americans supporting him, then it just shows you that the race is in. It’s in a much better place than people realize. But let me ask, can I ask you a question?

Bill Walton (42:21):

Yes.

Matt Schlapp (42:22):

This is the thing I’m struggling with. You look at all these polls, people say Trump could lose. What was the point of … if you believe that an angel or God or the cosmos or whatever people’s views are, I believe it’s God, intervened to save his life on that field in Pennsylvania. There’s no way, there’s no logical way to describe the fact that he got it. We were all together when that happened.

Bill Walton (42:47):

Yeah, we were.

Matt Schlapp (42:48):

That he got up off the canvas, stood up. We thought he might’ve been dead. We were sitting at our friend, Dr. Miller’s house, our board member. And we knew that he got hit because a staff member had called us and then we thought he might be dead. And I think a lot of us just started to pray. And then we saw videos that he got up and then we saw the fight, fight, fight. Does anybody believe that God spared his life so he could lose to Kamala Harris and go to prison? Maybe. I can’t see it.

Mercedes Schlapp (43:16):

We still have a month and a half to go. So let’s pray to God.

Matt Schlapp (43:18):

What do you think the answer to my question is?

Mercedes Schlapp (43:20):

No, I think it was definitely … I do believe there was an God intervention there. I do think though, that his life is so in danger that it could be another … I mean, I wouldn’t be surprised. I don’t think any of us would be surprised if they tried to kill him again.

Matt Schlapp (43:34):

But does it give you any comfort to know that we’re fighting all this evil-

Mercedes Schlapp (43:38):

Oh, yeah.

Matt Schlapp (43:38):

In every way all over the globe? Doesn’t it make you feel good that maybe there’s somebody … I believe in God, maybe he actually cares about this battle.

Mercedes Schlapp (43:47):

Yeah.

Matt Schlapp (43:47):

Well maybe he wants to win it.

Bill Walton (43:49):

I don’t want to make light of that. But when he was talking about afterwards though, he was talking to somebody on the phone, he said, “Yeah, I may have to start believing.”

Matt Schlapp (44:00):

Yes, he did.

Mercedes Schlapp (44:03):

I know, right?

Matt Schlapp (44:03):

He did.

Mercedes Schlapp (44:03):

I think God was on my side, the big guy.

Bill Walton (44:03):

He said, wait a second.

Matt Schlapp (44:06):

He said that to Carl Higbie the other day [inaudible 00:44:10].

Bill Walton (44:07):

This is [inaudible 00:44:10].

Matt Schlapp (44:10):

I’ll paraphrase him incorrectly, but he said something along the lines of, I used to think about God, but I think about him a lot more these days.

Bill Walton (44:15):

A lot more.

(44:18):

If you’re looking for an answer, I can’t give you the answer to this spiritual.

Matt Schlapp (44:22):

But it is an interesting question, which is, there is a spiritual component to just the darkness of what they’re doing. Think of what they’re doing to kids. Teaching kids to hate their gender, teaching kids to hate their parents, teaching kids to hate their country. All this hate.

Bill Walton (44:38):

You can’t last.

Mercedes Schlapp (44:39):

Yeah, you can’t last.

Matt Schlapp (44:40):

We got to beat it.

Mercedes Schlapp (44:41):

But I will tell you, I’m hopeful in the sense that even when I go to church, the churches are packed. And I do think that there is this sense of people turning to God, saying-

Matt Schlapp (44:52):

No atheist in [inaudible 00:44:53].

Mercedes Schlapp (44:53):

Have mercy on us. And they know things are bad. And so I do believe with prayer and action that it could end up [inaudible 00:45:04].

Matt Schlapp (45:04):

So what do you think is going to happen in November then?

Mercedes Schlapp (45:06):

I just … it’s going to be tough. I am not as hopeful as you are, but I lived through that 2020 where everything looked so like we were going to win.

Matt Schlapp (45:16):

Well, you were on the campaign.

Mercedes Schlapp (45:17):

And I saw that. Yeah, and I saw how everything fell apart so quickly. So I want to say I’m cautiously optimistic-

Matt Schlapp (45:23):

See, I have a different view, which is-

Mercedes Schlapp (45:25):

But you’re more like bullish than I am.

Matt Schlapp (45:26):

My knothole in Trump for 16, 20 and 24 is the same. And each time we go through a Trump presidential campaign, everyone’s like, I can’t believe they’re not doing this, or I can’t believe they’re doing this, or I can’t believe he’s not saying this. And I just view it as like it’s the same movie, it’s this sequel, it’s a little bit different. But it’s like it’s the same thing, which is he is the center of it. He is amazing, he’s strong, he knows what he wants to say. He has lots of advisors and sometimes he listens and you were one of his advisors. And sometimes he just does what he wants, he goes with his hunch. It is the same thing. Three different iterations of it, different people around him. But it’s the same dynamic. And some people hate it and some people love it. It’s the roller coaster, right? I always say it’s the roller coaster, but there’s no tracks. You don’t know where it’s going.

(46:13):

And you know what? I like to look at it and see the thrill of it and the sheer wonder of it. How is this going to end? Where’s it going to go? Other people, it just scares the hell out of them. It gives them knots in their tummy. They want to go upchuck over in the corner and it will not change. Until he leaves this earth, that is how he will roll.

Mercedes Schlapp (46:36):

All right, that’s a good way.

Bill Walton (46:37):

I think we wrapped it up there.

Mercedes Schlapp (46:39):

Yeah, I think we did. I think that’s a good way to end.

Bill Walton (46:41):

We could keep going, we’re done.

Matt Schlapp (46:43):

Do you think Ivanka would disagree with me? I don’t think so. I think they know who her father is and she loves him, his kids love him, and he’s wired how he’s wired.

Mercedes Schlapp (46:51):

We shall see.

Matt Schlapp (46:51):

By the way, you’re not going to change that much, Bill. I’m probably not going to change that much. You’re kind of wired. And when you’ve had as much success as he’s had, why change?

Bill Walton (47:02):

That’s the billionaire problem.

Matt Schlapp (47:03):

It is the billion … I don’t have this problem.

Bill Walton (47:07):

You see this all the time and we got to get out of here. In my world of private equity and dealing with rich people, people that have made a billion dollars, I don’t care what it is. All of a sudden assume that they know an awful lot that nobody else knows. And I don’t care if you made it in hardware distribution or in software or in real estate, stuff like that. Once you get to that billion number, you’re pretty smart and you’re-

Matt Schlapp (47:34):

Can I add something to that? Presidents who are not even worth close to a billion dollars, when you get to be the president, you also feel like you’ve done something so unique that it puts you in rarefied air. Add those two together, you’re a billionaire and you became the president. Very unique space.

Bill Walton (47:51):

And we want to elect this guy?

Matt Schlapp (47:53):

I do. I know you do too. I do too.

Bill Walton (47:57):

Paul has manifest complexities, he’s on the right side of the important things. That’s why we got to look at it.

Matt Schlapp (48:04):

That’s right.

Bill Walton (48:04):

Okay. Bill Walton Show, thanks for joining. We’ve had the amazing Matt and Mercy Schlapp, and hope you found this interesting. This is sort of the way we … this is sort of our weekend conversation, so we just thought we’d bring it here. They’ll be back because we’ve got an election coming up in five weeks. What’s that? We’re missing what?

Mercedes Schlapp (48:23):

Oh yes.

Bill Walton (48:24):

We’re missing Mercy’s Cuban cooking.

Matt Schlapp (48:26):

We could put some goodies here, Sarah, in the middle.

Mercedes Schlapp (48:27):

Maybe for the next time … next show.

Bill Walton (48:29):

Well, Matt and I are in the medium rare hamburger category and you’re in the well done.

Mercedes Schlapp (48:32):

That is accurate.

Bill Walton (48:33):

But that’s Trump’s world.

Mercedes Schlapp (48:35):

That is accurate.

Bill Walton (48:36):

Okay. Anyway, if you enjoyed this, even if you’re not a Trump person, I think you’d find this extremely interesting to learn about how the thinking goes in Trump world. So there’ll be more like this in the future, many of them. So if you liked it, subscribe, no matter what platform you’re on and get your friends to subscribe to. So anyway, thanks for joining the Bill Walton Show.

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