In this episode of the National Crawford Roundtable podcast the guys discuss the latest happenings with Iran. They talk about Trump’s trip to China-was it a success or failure? And they look into the Thomas Massey Kentucky Primary loss–was Trump’s influence a factor? What kind of influence does the President have in State Primaries?
SPEAKER 01 :
Welcome to the National Crawford Roundtable podcast, a view of culture, current events and politics through a biblical lens brought to you by Preborn, saving babies and souls. Join us in the fight to save babies from abortion. Your gift provides a free ultrasound for a mother in need. 80% of the time she will choose life. Visit CrawfordMediaGroup.net and click on the Preborn logo to donate to save babies now. and by SunPower LED light therapy devices. Bring light to your pain. Visit CrawfordMediaGroup.net and click on the SunPower LED logo to get out of pain and improve your overall wellness. And now, here are your hosts, Neil Boron, Bob Duco, and John Rush.
SPEAKER 04 :
Back with another week of the National Crawford Roundtable podcast. We’ve got all the guys with us. Neil Boron, Neil Boron, live out of Buffalo, New York. John Rush, Rush to Reason out of Denver, Colorado. Myself, Bob Duco, the Bob Duco Show out of Detroit. Gentlemen, how are you today? Awesome. Doing wonderfully well, Bob. Thanks. Sound excited, John. Doesn’t he?
SPEAKER 03 :
Great day.
SPEAKER 04 :
Never heard the word awesome presented with such a contrasting tone. Exactly. A few things to talk about this week. We record this podcast on Wednesday mornings. So last night, Tuesday night, were some important primary elections across the country. We’re going to talk about those, including… Thomas Massey in Kentucky, which is pretty significant. We’ll talk about all the latest with Iran. Where do we stand at this point? Does Trump have any choice but to just start launching military strikes again? Where do we stand with that? And then also, Trump’s China trip was a success, a failure. Some people are expressing disappointment that, hey, thought Trump would come home with more than he did. And the Red Dedicate 250 event that happened in Washington this past Sunday, we’ll talk about that as well. But the primary elections that took place Tuesday of this week… It appears, guys, that Trump had a very successful day. I mean, the people that he was backing and supporting are the ones who won. It is showing that Trump’s coattails are, in fact, very strong. And for all the people who try to argue that he is losing influence among his MAGA base, I’m just not seeing it. But, John, I’ll start with you. The big one, though, in… In Kentucky, because when we look at the Thomas Massey race here, this is pretty significant because Massey, of course, has been a large antagonist of Donald Trump’s. He was one of the people who actually voted for the impeachment of Donald Trump as well. along with the Democrats. He’s been against the Iran war large. He’s just been a constant antagonist for Trump. Some people are suggesting the guy’s really a Democrat that just keeps an R after his name anyway. So Trump says, you know what, we got to get rid of him and decides, all right, let’s do it. And so Trump reaches out to this former Navy SEAL and a Kentucky farmer Ed Gowrain, and says, you know what? Come on. You can be a United States congressman. Let’s do it. I’ll get behind you. And what do you know? Thomas Massey has been primaried. He’s going to be out of a job here. And so what are your thoughts on yesterday? Not just Thomas Massey, how significant this is, John, but the rest of the suite that it appears Trump had yesterday.
SPEAKER 03 :
Well, and by the way, for those of you that don’t believe what we’re saying, anybody that MTG, Margie Taylor Greene would endorse, which in this case was Thomas Massey, good riddance to both of them. I don’t like her. I don’t like him. They are both very much anti-Trump, anti-Israel, anti-Jew. They’re racist, really, if you want to get down to it, if you ask me, Bob, when it’s all said and done. And I have no room for those people. whatsoever. So it was good news watching him lose last night. And to your point, Trump was very effective across the board. I mean, did he get every single one of his endorsements? Of course not. But did he get the majority of them? Yes, he did. So those people that are out there, the Marjorie Taylor Greene’s and so on, that are saying that, you know, this MAGA movement is dead. Donald Trump is a betrayer of all of what he’s talked about when it comes to MAGA and so on. Bob, it’s just not true. These are These are people that – and maybe this is a topic for another day, but these are people that want so much that just can never be delivered on, and they’re never happy until they get every single thing they want. Yeah.
SPEAKER 04 :
Well, and, you know, Neil, it does seem as though – the MAGA base is still very strongly behind Donald Trump. He is still extremely successful here. And I got to say, a lot of the press, Neil, is treating this as, oh, it’s Donald Trump’s revenge agenda. And he’s taking out his political opponents and those who disagree with him or whatever. And I was like, No, you can word things that way all you want to, but this is the way that politics works, okay? How many times do people say, if you’ve got somebody who’s bad for your party, then you primary them. You primary them out. Well, that’s all Trump is doing. He’s working within the system. He’s not doing dirty politics. He’s not using the FBI to start investigating their families and their backgrounds and see what dirt they can dick on them. No, he’s saying, you know what? Let’s find somebody who is going to, in fact, support our agenda politically. Quit aligning with the Democrats and let’s run that person in primaries. That’s the legal way to do it. That’s the ethical and political way to do it. That’s the above board way to do it. And that’s exactly what Donald Trump has been doing and it’s been successful.
SPEAKER 02 :
Yeah, people on the left, they got to have a way to explain it, right? And so they always go to their… narratives to try to explain away this stuff because this obviously indicates that donald trump still has a major amount of sway in the republican party and i would say like the traditional republican party not the rhino republican party uh he and thomas and by the way really quick neil and not the far right woke republican party either so you’re right on both ends Okay. Yeah. And so, I mean, I don’t know that I have all the details in front of me, but I counted as many as 25 different races where he endorsed a candidate that won in the primaries, like 25 for 25. Unbelievable. And it obviously speaks for itself. I mean, you can make up any kind of tale you want about how his influence is waning, and we’ll see what happens in the midterms. I mean, this doesn’t guarantee that there’s gonna be a red wave in the midterms. It just says that Donald Trump is uh maybe damaged in terms of you know his polling numbers and what people are saying about their his thought you know the thoughts about the iran war or whatever which we’ll talk about later but no he’s got a tremendous amount of power and i got to believe that massey is you know uh is questioning whether or not he did the right thing. Did you, Tucker Carlson and others, you know, have said that he’s sort of the sacrificial lamb for doing the right thing. And you can argue all you want about certain policies and maybe he, you know, maybe there’s some things I would agree with Thomas Massey on, but he was against anything Trump said all the time and he needed to go and he did. He’s out. Goodbye.
SPEAKER 04 :
No, you know what? And I’m glad he is. And the Tucker Carlsons and others, the people that are attacking Trump on Iran, and we’re going to get to Iran in just a minute, but the people that are attacking him on Iran, here’s what they got to realize, okay? People like Chuck Schumer, who says Donald Trump is running an illegal war and we’re not winning and we need to, this needs to be brought to a close or whatever. This is gasoline in the engine of the hardliners in Iran. I I am convinced that Iran would have agreed to the United States’ demands in a peace agreement if we showed some sense of unity here in the United States, if Democrats were not constantly encouraging and motivating the Iran hardliners to not give up, to keep fighting another day, along with our NATO and European so-called allies. If there was a united front… then I do believe that Iran would have given up by now. And so why would they give up when they got people going, Donald Trump is a war criminal and we’re going to impeach him and get him removed from office and we get control. Why in the world are you helping our enemies like that? My goodness. But we’re going to dive into that in just a moment. Where we stand with Iran and the Strait of Hormuz. And that whole thing, we’ve got a lot more to talk about as we work our way through this National Crawford Roundtable podcast. We do appreciate you folks supporting our sponsors very much, like SunPowerLED and like Preborn. And, you know, Preborn is the main pro-life group that supplies ultrasound images in pro-life centers all across the country. And when a mom sees a picture of her baby, she very, very rarely says, goes through with an abortion. She usually lets that baby live and commonly accepts Jesus Christ as Savior too. So here’s the thing. It takes money to operate these ultrasound machines. And that’s why we’re asking you folks in the audience, will you financially give to pre-born? Will you pay for ultrasound images to save babies’ lives? $28 is the average ultrasound expense to help stop one abortion, to help save one baby’s life, to help change one mom’s mind. How many babies’ lives will you save? Take $28 times fill in the blank. Pray about a number. I know a lot of you have given to pre-born already. Many of you give on a regular basis. Hey, make it part of your regular missionary budget of your household that you’re saving babies’ lives. Today, take $28 times fill in the blank, pray about a number, and give to Preborn. And here’s how you give. You can call them and give over the phone at 833-850-BABY. That’s 833-850-BABY. They answer the phones 24-7, so call now. Or just give online at CrawfordMediaGroup.net. Click on Preborn. CrawfordMediaGroup.net. Click on Preborn. And remember, 100% of what you give goes to ultrasounds. Nothing for overhead. That’s all covered by private donors. So CrawfordMediaGroup.net, click on Preborn. And Neil Wather at CrawfordMediaGroup.net. We also wanted to click on SunPowerLED.
SPEAKER 02 :
Yeah, absolutely. And what a product it is. It’s photobiomodulation, which means light therapy. It’s using light to heal our bodies. Certain wavelengths of red and near-infrared light get to the cellular level. and wake up the mitochondria and the cells to do what they were designed to do and i often say it’s kind of like putting batteries in your remote all of a sudden it’s easier to change the channel or to change it at all on your television set or turn up the volume well photobiomodulation makes a difference now living in buffalo new york you think i would be a great skier right well not so much i did enjoy skiing for a time but the last time i went out I broke three ribs on the right side of my body. So I’m thinking about Alan right now. This is a guy who broke his ribs, but they were literally healed and restored using photobiomodulation. Now, they would have probably healed anyway in time. Anybody that’s ever broken their ribs knows how just incredibly painful it can be. Somebody gets you laughing. It’s hard to roll over in bed. You know, everything hurts. Well, anyway, not only did he avoid most of that, but now his breaks in his ribs are undetectable by the doctors using x-rays. Point is that light therapy helps heal our bodies. It reduces pain and swelling and promotes healing. And I want you to go to, as Bob suggested, CrawfordMediaGroup.net. Click on SunPowerLED. If you happen to order something, use the promo code ROUNDTABLE10, and you’ll save 10% on your order. But you can learn all about light therapy online. by simply going to that CrawfordMediaGroup.net site and click on SunPower LED, Bob. All right.
SPEAKER 04 :
And thank you, Neil. And let’s switch over to Iran now and talk a little bit more about that in detail. And first things first, I want to get you guys’ thoughts on what I was saying right before we talked about our sponsors. And then we’ll talk about what’s probably going to happen and how do we – gauge what happens next in Iran. And so, John, I do want to start with you on this. What I was saying before, the Iran war, it has gone on longer, I think, than Trump expected. I admit longer than I expected. I didn’t think this thing would go two months. I really didn’t before there would be an actual peace agreement signed by Iran. But But in all fairness, I didn’t expect the kind of Trump attacks publicly and the absolute lack of support from NATO and European allies that we’ve had. Notice our NATO and European allies, they’re not coming out saying this war is wrong. They’re saying, oh, yeah, we agree they cannot be allowed to go nuclear. And we’re ready to help once a peace agreement is signed and the dust settles. Then you can count on us to come on and offer support. But for the most part, they really haven’t done this. And then I look at Democrats in this country, not just Democrats, but the entertainment industry and such. But my goodness, when you have – People like Chuck Schumer, the leader. It’s not some obscure senator. He’s the leader of the Democrat Party in the United States Senate. And you have Hakeem Jeffries, who would be Speaker of the House if Democrats controlled the House. These are the two top Democrats in Washington, D.C. You know, John, you got to wonder, what do… The so-called supreme leader of Iran and the hardliners, the Shiite Muslims, what are they thinking whenever they talk about the possibility of, well, do we go ahead and just cave and agree to what Donald Trump’s demands? Why would they agree? But if they see and hear the rhetoric that’s coming out of the Democrats in Washington, D.C. right now, I would argue they are actually propping up Iran and encouraging them to keep on fighting and delaying this thing. And I just think that’s sick.
SPEAKER 03 :
I agree 100 percent, Bob. In fact, and really quick, the other countries that you talked about, it’s sort of like that. That neighbor where, you know, you’ve got a big tree and your limbs might be growing over into their yard. And the neighbor comes over and says, you know, we ought to do something about that tree that’s now kind of coming over into my yard and kind of starting to get on to my house a little bit. And, you know, kind of points out all that’s wrong, but never does anything to help trim it. I mean, that’s kind of what’s going on with these other countries, if you really want to get down to it. You know, yeah, they know it’s there, but they don’t want to do anything about it. They’re happy to say that it needs done, but they don’t want to do anything about it. And the Democrat Party, they’re even worse than that, Bob. They are just so downright evil. They literally will side on the side of evil, which is what Iran is. Let’s not forget that. This is the number one sponsor of terror in the entire world, has been for a long decades, decades plural now. And the reality is we’ve got the Democrat Party that’s basically on their side. And I like you, Bob. I thought this thing would be over sooner than now. But I didn’t like you. I didn’t count on, you know, one political party being as as how should I say this, anti-Trump and as much pro-Iran as. As they basically I mean, these guys, I think they are fine with this war tearing forever. And I always come back to this. Everybody talks about how the Democrats always, you know, they love people. They’re for the people. No, they’re not. Because if they were, they would be on the side of getting this war over, getting oil prices back down, getting the straight open, which would drive those prices down. And it would help out the average American. They don’t care, Bob.
SPEAKER 04 :
You know what? I could not agree with you more. And Neil, the thing is, if the Democrats actually really did care about gas prices and the pain and suffering this is causing at the pump for middle and low income Americans, if they really cared about that, then the Democrats would want a quick end to this war. They know the quickest way to end this war is to let Iran see a unified front on the part of America. Nobody’s saying the Democrats have to come out and start praising Trump. But here’s an idea. Just shut up with the criticisms about the war. All right. If you just keep your mouth shut about that, if we can all be. I mean, come on. I’m trying to imagine during World War Two. A bunch of Republicans because, well, FDR is a Democrat. And so, therefore, we’re going to call this an illegal war. And it’s a crime. It’s a war crime. He needs to be removed from office. And, you know, Germany’s really winning. The Nazis are really winning. And we’re losing here. Why in the world would you give a Tony Robbins motivational speech to the enemy? And that’s exactly what the Democrats are doing. I don’t see any difference in what the Democrats are saying and what the propaganda media within Iran is saying. If you think about it, I can look at a press release from Iran, and I can’t really tell any difference between that and what the Democrats are saying in interviews here in America. Of course it’s motivating them to keep dragging out the war. Why would they give up if Trump is being called a war criminal by – political leaders in this country.
SPEAKER 02 :
Yeah, well, I wouldn’t, you know, lump John Fetterman in with the other Democrats on this particular issue. Not every Democrat. Right.
SPEAKER 04 :
Almost all of them.
SPEAKER 02 :
Yeah, I’m not arguing with you on that. I’m just saying almost every Democrat falls into the category you’re describing. And the reason is I believe that they hate Donald Trump more than than iran or anyone else it would be an enemy of the united states of america their hatred for donald trump is so off the rails that they can’t see the forest for the trees when it comes to these things and you’re 100 right i mean let me also add i think that iran is not planning to back down at all because we’re talking about a radical islamic fundamentalist terrorist regime that literally wants to bring about the apocalypse and the arrival of the Mahdi. They want this to happen worldwide because ultimately, quote, their Islamic Messiah will return. You got that factor, then on top of it, you’re 100% right. if they see that there’s some sense of a meltdown in the united states where there’s disagreement amongst leaders and no real you know unified approach to dealing with iran then just ride it out because they’re hoping that there’s going to be some type of implosion here in the us and then they win by default well they’re utterly destroyed militarily for now but they’re going to you know they’re going to do everything they possibly can to rebuild But you’re right. And by the way, the Democrats need to come clean on that reality that they have stood in the way of us finishing this whole thing once and for all. And they bear tremendous responsibility for gas prices or any other kind of suffering in the U.S. anyway. And the world economy is affected by this. They bear responsibility for that because they’re not helping to get this thing finished. I agree with you on that, Bob.
SPEAKER 04 :
Yeah. And by the way, even the Democrats acting like jerks like they are and frankly acting treasonous, in my honest opinion, because when we’re at war with the number one state sponsor of terrorism in the world, when we’re at war with the main terrorist nation of the world, And you’re rooting on and encouraging and motivating that terrorist nation. As far as I’m concerned, that is giving aid and comfort to the enemy. It really is. But, you know, whatever. However, what could overcome that, Neil, though, in my honest opinion, is… At least if our NATO allies and at least our European allies are supposed to be our friends, if they would come out with a unified front saying we stand shoulder to shoulder with the United States in this and we’ll supply whatever, there’s no question about using our airspace, no question about using our bases. And as a matter of fact, we’re going to send some ships to the region just so Donald Trump, if he needs them, he’s got them right there. If there was a unified front like that, That’s another thing that I think, Neil, would cause Iran to say, all right, maybe we ought to just cave.
SPEAKER 02 :
Let me just read a paragraph from I think it was a Fox News article. It says history does not remember those who merely manage crises. It remembers those who confront and dismantle the ideologies that produce them. The 20th century proved this decisively. Nazism, fascism and communism once appeared immovable. yet ultimately collapsed under sustained and determined pressure. The Islamic Republic of Iran belongs in that same category. It’s not a state that evolves towards moderation. It’s an ideological system that sustains itself through repression, deception, and expansion. And I think they’re doing everything they possibly can to hold on as long as they possibly can. But one other factor in this that we haven’t talked about here, but if you recall what four months ago the people of Iran were revolting, And there was an attempt, at least it seemed an attempt, to overthrow that regime in Iran. And they were unsuccessful. But in a weakened state, it’s possible that if at some point they decide to rise up again, that they could somehow overthrow this regime. and change the entire game because i think the people of iran are going to be way more reasonable than the leadership leadership of iran and and and they’re asking for our help i mean they want our help so uh i don’t know i think everything changes if something internally in iran happens but barring that then it’s uh back to a blinking contest between trump and iran and right now uh no matter what is happening in congress my money’s on trump i I don’t think he’s planning to go away at any cost.
SPEAKER 04 :
I don’t either. You know, John, a lot of people are asking now that the war seems to be, quote, unquote, dragging on, gas prices are in the fours and whatever, close to $5 a gallon, is the war worth it? Is it really worth it? And I think to myself, my goodness, what if? I was saying this on my show yesterday, actually, here in Michigan. Let’s imagine, parallel universe, Donald Trump does not stop Iran. He had all the leaders of Iran all in the same place. You could take them out. And you got the atomic agency and the UN and other intelligence that’s saying that they have, in fact, enriched enough uranium to make 11 nuclear bombs. Now it’s just a matter of finishing that process. Let’s imagine that Trump decides he takes his finger off the trigger. No, I’m not going to do anything. Inaction. Okay. Gas is still $2.90 a gallon. Everybody’s, oh, hey, that’s really good. Housing market’s starting to come back. Hey, things are looking good. Donald Trump can make himself look good in that regard and kind of help the Republicans for this November. But what happens if NBC News starts reporting today, oh, guess what? Iran is now officially a nuclear nation. Iran, just like North Korea, is the latest nuclear nation. Now that Iran is nuclear… You realize, John, nobody can touch them then. Our window of opportunity to stop them militarily just closed because Iran would say, hey, you lay a finger on us. We’re going to launch a nuclear weapon toward Israel and right into the Middle East. And now suddenly we’ve got nuclear holocaust, which they don’t mind. And then all the Trump haters are going to be like, you had a chance to stop them before this happened and you didn’t do it. Right. So what is the alternative? We let them go nuclear? And by the way, if Iran gets a nuclear weapon, we know that they know they can’t be touched anymore. So they can do whatever they want to. You really think they’re going to allow a free flow of oil through the Strait of Hormuz when they know they can now not be stopped? No, they’d allow China and Russia and their friends, but they’d start extorting the rest of the world saying, no, you got to pay a billion dollars to us in extortion money if you want to use the Strait of Hormuz. So guess what? Gas prices were going to go up anyway. They could either go up with Iran still being who they were before, or they can go up with Iran being reduced to a pile of rubble and brought to their knees as we’re trying to get them to give up. But one way or another, I think they were going to close the Strait.
SPEAKER 03 :
Yeah. What you’re saying is it either goes up on our terms or theirs.
SPEAKER 04 :
Exactly. You’re exactly right.
SPEAKER 03 :
And right now it’s on our terms and it will end. And I keep telling people that and it will. It’s not going to be this way forever. Next year at this time, we’re going to be talking about, you know, gasoline prices back down in the two dollar a gallon range. So everybody just be patient. It’ll happen. It’s just going to take some time. Never fear. And I’m with Neil. Donald Trump is not going to back off of this at all. Iran doesn’t know who they’re messing with.
SPEAKER 04 :
I could not agree with you more. And listen, I want to take a moment right now, though. And as we talk about this, we got more certainly to discuss in the second half. And we’re going to talk about Trump’s China trip and how do we assess that. So a lot more to get to. But first, we want to say none of this would happen if it wasn’t for our. sponsors. We very much appreciate SunPowerLED and Preborn sponsoring and supporting this podcast. I’m just asking you folks in the audience, if you haven’t given to Preborn in a while, would you do it again? Make it part of your regular missionary budget in your household that you save babies’ lives. that you protect them from the abortionist. And you do this by giving money to preborn. See, preborn uses that money to show ultrasound images in pro-life centers of unborn babies to expectant moms. They do this all over the country, all right? And that changes moms’ minds. They let their babies live, and they commonly accept Jesus Christ as Savior too. So we’re asking you to give, give, and keep on giving to preborn. How much will you give today? $28 is the average ultrasound expense to help stop one abortion. How many abortions would you be willing to stop today? Take $28 times fill in the blank, pray about a number. And hey, we need some of you out there to buy ultrasound machines. They’re 15 grand a piece, great tax write-off for you. Your forever legacy is you’re stopping thousands and thousands of abortions over the years. But for everybody else, take $28 times fill in the blank. And give right now. And every dime you give to Preborn goes to fund ultrasounds. Nothing for overhead. That’s all covered by private donors. So you can give over the phone by calling 833-850-BABY. Just mention National Crawford Roundtable when you call. And they answer the phones 24-7. So 833-850-BABY. Or online at CrawfordMediaGroup.net. That’s CrawfordMediaGroup.net. And Neil, while they’re there, we wanted to check out SunPowerLED.
SPEAKER 02 :
Yeah, SunPower LED, it offers light therapy or photobiomodulation to take wavelengths of light and use that to help reduce pain and swelling and promote healing in our bodies. And it has an incredible impact to be able to help people heal from a variety of different things. And I don’t know why I’m thinking of this right now, but like, A lot of days when I was a kid, I’d come home from school and watch an episode of the Flintstones. Now, how Gazoo got in there. I don’t remember. He was the space age alien guy. It was great with the big helmet. All right. The great Gazoo. The great, great Gazoo. You know, you need to go back and watch an episode to see what I’m saying. Or just go to Crawford Media Group dot net. Click on SunPower LED and check out their helmet unit. There’s literally a helmet unit that goes over top of your head. Looks like a zoo from the Flintstones. But the reason I’m bringing it up is just over a week ago as broadcasting in Toronto, a woman came by. We were talking to Tom Kerber of SunPower LED, put the helmet on her and the migraine she was experiencing went away in a matter of about three minutes. It was unbelievable. You can learn all this for yourself by going to CrawfordMediaGroup.net. Click on SunPowerLED. Use the promo code ROUNDTABLE10 if you want to save yourself 10%. But it’s an incredible way to get rid of pain and swelling and promote healing in your body, Bob. Absolutely.
SPEAKER 04 :
Now you got me thinking the Flintstones here, you know.
SPEAKER 02 :
Remember the way outs?
SPEAKER 04 :
The way outs, way outs. Remember that group? Here we go. The accordion body. Get this guy started. You’re in big trouble. Oh, see, you get me started now. Somebody asked me one time, what’s my best proof that dinosaurs lived with man? I’m like, hey, you see Fred and Dino in the same frame. What more do you need? I know. Lame, I tell you. Okay. We’ve got a lot more to talk about in the second half of this podcast. We’re going to talk about Trump’s trip to China. Was this a success? Was it a failure? How do we assess that? And also the Rededicate 250 event that happened in Washington this past Sunday. So a lot more to get to with John Rush, Neil Boron, myself, Bob Duco, in the second half of this National Crawford Roundtable podcast.
SPEAKER 01 :
This is a Crawford Media Group production.
SPEAKER 04 :
Continue in the second half of the National Crawford Roundtable podcast with John Rush, Rush to Reason out of Denver, Colorado. Neil Boron, Neil Boron Live out of Buffalo, New York. Myself, Bob Duco, the Bob Duco Show out of Detroit. First half, we talked about the primary election results from yesterday. Thomas Massey is out. Donald Trump had a tremendously successful election day in primarying the RINOs. And of course, we talked about the latest with Iran. But guys, let’s let’s shift it to to China right now. President Trump goes on his China trip. It was hugely anticipated. And it most people, I think, are looking at this trip. As somewhat of a disappointment. OK, it’s not that Trump didn’t come back with anything. OK, he did. He got Boeing China to buy 200 jets from Boeing. He got China to invest in American farmers more. He put China on notice and said, hey, we got a lot of U.S. businesses that you could be doing business with and you’re losing money right now. And of course, he talked about Iran and he did get China, Neil, to agree that we’re not going to sell arms to Iran while this war is going on and to agree that, yeah, the Strait of Hormuz should be opened and to agree that, yeah, we’re going to continue trying to denuclearize North Korea. So he got some stuff out of China, but for the most part, Not too much. I wouldn’t say Trump was beaten in China at all, but in all fairness, I don’t think we can say that Xi Jinping was beaten. To me, it seems like you had a couple of heavyweights that went toe-to-toe for 15 rounds, and not a lot was accomplished, but at least Donald Trump stood up to him, put him on notice, and it was strength versus strength. So I wouldn’t call it a failure, but I wouldn’t call it a resounding success either. I feel like it was kind of a sideways move. Maybe I’m being too uncharitable to Trump in this case, but I don’t know. What’s your take on the China trip, Neil?
SPEAKER 02 :
Pretty much what you’re saying. I think, you know, I’ve read a number of articles on it, and one theme that seems to be emerging is that it’s clear the U.S. is winning when it comes to AI and that Taiwan is kind of linked into that because of – you know, the technology we’re gaining from our relationship with them, et cetera, et cetera. So Taiwan became a real question mark. And maybe we can talk about that in a second, but that we also are winning in the area of energy. And I still think, and this came up before, I’m sure you guys agree that Venezuela was a strategic piece in the puzzle here that Donald Trump was was playing chess, maybe 3D or 4D chess at that point to do what he did in Venezuela to help guarantee the oil that’s coming from there. And the same thing, of course, with our energy independence and ability to produce oil. And so that our hemisphere is well supplied when it comes to energy. The Strait of Hormuz becomes a big issue. Of course, we can talk more about that. And that the U.S. economy is strong and that it’s second to none. And I think the whole thing, he brought 30 CEOs with him, American CEOs, which was a surprise. I guess that was not known in advance. And had to possibly throw President Xi off a little bit like, whoa, what is this about? But I think he was trying to make the case that you just described that, listen, there’s a lot of money to be had and financial success to be had if you’re willing to cooperate with us on a variety of different issues. But I said this last week, I think when I was with John, Bob, you weren’t here last week, but I don’t trust China as far as I could throw them. Neither do I trust Russia. And if you’re Chinese or Russian, I’m not talking about you as a person. I’m talking about the military and political regime that exists in China and in Russia, both of whom are believed to have supplied some intelligence, maybe some weapons, definitely some training to people in Iran right now. So we’re not just fighting Iran. But lurking in the background is Russia and China, both of which have similar interest to Iran. And I don’t know, I think overall, I wish more was accomplished in China, but he definitely didn’t come away with his tail between his legs. I think, you know, you’re right. Two heavyweights that pounded on each other for a while. And it looks like nobody officially won, but you kind of have to wait and see how it all plays out in the future.
SPEAKER 04 :
You know, and John, I… I’m thinking maybe I am being a little bit uncharitable to Trump.
SPEAKER 03 :
Yeah, I look at it a little bit differently than you guys do.
SPEAKER 04 :
Well, and actually, let me throw this out there and then I’d like to get your take. I suppose it depends on what our point of reference is and what our expectations are. Because if this were the first time ever that Donald Trump met with Xi Jinping – Then I think it would be like, hey, you know what? He went there and he showed American strength and resolve and whatever. And he stood toe to toe with him and and he came away with some concessions. And so, you know what? Not too bad. But it’s almost like the expectations on Trump are so high because he is such a master negotiator, because he is so strong. You know, it’s almost like, you know, Muhammad Ali going against somebody back in the day and you’re disappointed that he just barely won a split decision. You know, so it’s like that’s probably not a fair way to look at it. But, you know, I don’t know. What is your take on the whole China trip?
SPEAKER 03 :
Yeah, I look at it a little bit differently, mainly because I think Trump looks at the long game, even some of what he said earlier. When he came back, which I know a lot of people didn’t like his comments about, you know, it’s okay for China to have X amount of students here and X amount of, you know, land, you know, farmland owned by China. Trust me, that was not his true feelings. He said that to basically get from China what he wants. I guarantee you, I would bet a large sum of money that that will That will not happen. He’ll reverse course on that in the not-too-distant future once the Iran war is over. China is in bad shape. This is something that the news media will never tell. They are such lovers of China, which just drives me absolutely crazy. It’s a communist regime. That’s why they love him. They love them that way. Yeah. I mean, they forced the church underground. They still are literally assassinating certain individuals if they don’t agree with the state and on and on we go. I mean, they are as evil as evil gets. So when you look at all of that and realize that on top of that, China is not doing well. There are stories out there that their population isn’t even what they claim it is. Economically speaking, they prop everything up through through their money manipulation and so on. So at the end of the day, they are not doing very well. So I look at this actually as a bigger win than probably most do because Trump didn’t back down on anything. He got them to agree to do a certain amount of things when it was all said and done. And ultimately, what he really needs from them, and this is what he’s playing in the long game, is unlike the Democrats, he needs China in Iran’s ear to say, listen, if we don’t get this thing fixed before long, all of us are going to suffer, including China and Russia and others. So at the end of the day, I do believe that Trump is getting China to help him with Iran. And I think that’s why he hasn’t just obliterated them at this point.
SPEAKER 04 :
Well, and I’ll tell you what, you bring up a fair point here, John, that we don’t know what’s going on behind the scenes. One of the things that Trump does understand is strong, powerful leaders need to save face and look like strong, powerful leaders.
SPEAKER 03 :
That’s right.
SPEAKER 04 :
to put some pressure on Iran. But I don’t want you going public with that and that Trump would be honoring that and saying, you know what, that’s all right. I’m not going to make you look weak. I’m not going to make you look like you’re kissing my ring. So we’ll make it look like a stalemate. But Yeah, do this stuff behind the scenes because it is going to benefit you if the strait gets open and this Iran war gets over. So we don’t know what concessions may have been made behind the scenes. But Trump is very good at understanding that people like Putin, people like Xi Jinping, they can’t be humiliated on the public stage. And if they’re made to look like they’re kissing Donald Trump’s ring or bowing to him – then Trump’s not going to get anywhere with them and the U.S. isn’t either. So you have to stroke their egos and protect their image. And by the way, I think they know that too about Donald Trump. Our Middle Eastern allies know that about Donald Trump. I think that’s one of the reasons why they’re posting things like, yeah, we’re asking Donald Trump to delay on the next step militarily. I think they’re doing that so that Trump can say – I’m ready to go in, guns a-blazin’, but our Middle Eastern allies are asking me, will I please wait a little bit so I’ll go ahead and do what they want? I think Trump is wanting them to publicly ask that so that Trump can look like he’s coming from a position of strength, not weakness. So there is a perception game that’s very real here that needs to be done. And Trump knows how to play that perception game. And so that’s why I do trust his instincts when it comes to this. Neil, let me ask you, before we continue, talking about this and then shifting to the Rededicate 250. We do want our listeners to support our sponsors like Preborn and certainly SunPower LED.
SPEAKER 02 :
Yeah, SunPower LED offers light therapy that’s affordable and accessible to people like you and I. Now, there are light therapy products available on Amazon, but it’s like buying a Fisher-Price toy. The They’re not anywhere near the professional grade that you can get by buying a product from SunPower LED. We’re talking about the highest level of light therapy available anywhere, and it’s affordable because of what SunPower LED has been able to do. And so what you’re talking about here is using light that God created, by the way. This isn’t big pharma. It’s not big tech. It’s God. and just simply harnessing certain wavelengths of red and near-infrared light, no ultraviolet radiation, no fear of skin cancer, but it penetrates the body, it gets to the cellular level, and it energizes the cell to heal us and to reduce pain, arthritis pain, migraines, joint pain, knee pain, back and neck pain, spinal stenosis, epilepsy, seizures, tinnitus, shingles, the list goes on and on. If you want to learn how light can be used to help heal your body, even recovery from wound care is a big deal. Learn all about it by going to CrawfordMediaGroup.net. Click on SunPowerLED. When you’re there, use the promo code Roundtable10 if you decide to buy something, and you’ll save 10% just because you’re a listener to the National Crawford Roundtable podcast. But it’s all available. You can learn all about it at CrawfordMediaGroup.net and by clicking on SunPowerLED. But that’s also where you can learn about our other major sponsor, Bob Preborn.
SPEAKER 04 :
Absolutely. And we want you folks, if you’ve given to pre-born, keep on giving. Make it part of your regular missionary budget. Think about it. You’re saving babies’ lives. That’s what you do. When you pay pre-born, you’re paying to activate ultrasound machines because it does take money to run these machines, folks. And you’re changing moms’ minds when they decide to let their baby live instead of going across the street to Planned Parenthood. So how many babies’ lives will you be willing to save today? $28 is the average ultrasound expense to help save one baby’s life. How many babies’ lives will you save? Take $28 times, fill in the blank, pray about a number. And remember, 100% of what you give to pre-born goes to ultrasounds, not a penny for overhead. That’s all covered by private donors. So $28 times fill in the blank. Pray about a number. And then we need some of you out there to buy ultrasound machines. They’re 15 grand apiece. Great tax write-off for you. And you’re stopping thousands and thousands of abortions over the years. But for everybody else, $28 times fill in the blank. What number will it be today? Just give by going to CrawfordMediaGroup.net. Click on pre-born. Give right there. CrawfordMediaGroup.net. Click on pre-born. And also, you can give over the phone. The answer to the phone is 24-7. So call 833-850-BABY. That’s 833-850-BABY. Just mention National Crawford Roundtable when you call. We appreciate you folks doing that.
SPEAKER 02 :
And, you know, another aspect of this is like what… J.D. Vance recently was talking about and the importance of true religious freedom, which means that not everybody’s going to believe in Jesus. And some people are going to try to find their own path to God. In fact, his own wife, Usha Vance, is a practicing Hindu. But, you know, the point needs to be made. God put Adam and Eve in the garden and he said, don’t eat from this tree. And if you do, you’ll surely die. But he didn’t force them to eat from it. And he didn’t prevent them from eating from it. so he he gave them true choice the bottom line is true choice is a biblical concept that we can choose to follow god or not choose you this day whom you will serve and i think if we’re really going to celebrate religious freedom it has to be with the understanding that yes we should proclaim boldly that jesus christ is the way to god he’s the only way to god according to scripture But there are those who are going to disagree with it, and we just have to be ready for that kind of pushback. But I’m so glad to see that in the public square, people like Donald Trump and J.D. Vance and others, Mike Johnson, and I think Franklin Graham was a part of that, standing up and boldly proclaiming the truth of God’s word. We need to do it more often.
SPEAKER 04 :
That’s right. And by the way, John, this is actually consistent with our founding fathers and the founding of this nation.
SPEAKER 03 :
Absolutely.
SPEAKER 04 :
When you look at the proclamations that they regularly put out calling for the light of Jesus Christ to be spread all over the world, all over the earth. This was normal. The largest church in Washington, D.C., 200 years ago was the United States Capitol building converted to a church every Sunday morning, and the United States Marine Corps band served as the worship team. This is all documented in the National Archives in Washington, D.C., and in the Library of Congress, but it’s censored from school American history books. So what the Trump administration was doing Sunday was consistent with our founding fathers, no matter how many ACLU, anti-crash, liberal union, separation of church and state nonsense lies are told.
SPEAKER 03 :
That’s exactly right. And at the end of the day, great start to the 250th anniversary and the celebrations that will happen really all over the country and will kind of, you know, I guess be the top of it will be July 4th, of course, Independence Day, but looking forward to that as well.
SPEAKER 04 :
Absolutely. You know, we always appreciate you folks listening to this podcast. And Neil, we very much appreciate them supporting our sponsors like, of course, Preborn and also SunPower LED.
SPEAKER 02 :
Yeah, and you can learn about both by going to CrawfordMediaGroup.net. Somebody might ask me, you know, why are you so enthusiastic about discussing SunPower LED? Is it just because they’re a sponsor of The Roundtable? No, I’m thrilled the response of the roundtable, but I believe that light therapy from SunPower LED literally saved my life. In 2021, I had a real bad bout of the Delta variant of COVID. Thank God I had it other times and it was no real big deal, but I almost got knocked down for the count in 2021 and I was unable to really get any value out of breathing. I could take a deep breath, but my blood oxygen level was at 79. That’s way too low. And I was, I think, on my way to checking out of the program when somebody suggested that I use light therapy from SunPower LED. And in a matter of about 10 days, now, even though I’d struggled with this for a month with no change in my condition, in 10 days, I was completely healed. I was back to 100%. or 99% oxygen saturation. SunPower LED makes a difference. I believe it saved my life by God’s grace, and you should check it out. See how it can be used to reduce pain or swelling or promote healing in your body. Go to CrawfordMediaGroup.net, click on SunPower LED, and if you happen to order something, use the promo code ROUNDTABLE10 to save yourself 10%. That’s also where you’ll see our other major sponsor, Preborn.
SPEAKER 04 :
Absolutely. And folks, a lot of you give to Preborn. You know that. Many of you continue to give, making it part of your regular missionary budget of your household to save babies’ lives. And thank you for doing that. Keep on doing that. How much can you give to Preborn today? Pray about a number, whatever that is. Take $28, which helps save one baby’s life through ultrasound images. Take $28 times fill in the blank. Just pray about a number, folks. Whatever you can give, give. And yes, we need some of you to buy ultrasound machines. They’re $15,000 a piece. You get a nice tax write-off. And of course, you’re stopping thousands and thousands of abortions year after year. But For the rest of everybody else, $28 times some number, whatever that is, and that’s your gift to Preborn. And don’t forget, 100% of what you give to Preborn goes to ultrasounds, not a penny for overhead. That’s all covered by private donors. So, yeah, go to CrawfordMediaGroup.net, click on Preborn, give right there. CrawfordMediaGroup.net, click on Preborn. They also answer the phones 24-7, so you can call any time. And give right over the phone. Just call 833-850-BABY. That’s 833-850-BABY. Mention National Crawford Roundtable when you call. And we appreciate you supporting our sponsors. We appreciate you listening to this podcast, folks, and sharing it with your friends and such. We appreciate your five-star reviews. And, you know, we just appreciate you being in the audience, everybody. So John Rush, Rush to Reason out of Denver, Colorado. Neil Boron, Neil Boron Live out of Buffalo, New York. Myself, Bob Duco, The Bob Duco Show out of Detroit. Guys, always great catching up with you. Thanks a lot. See you next week. Likewise.
SPEAKER 01 :
You’ve been listening to the National Crawford Roundtable Podcast, a view of today’s culture through a biblical lens, brought to you by Preborn, saving babies and souls. Join us in the fight to save babies from abortion. Your gift provides a free ultrasound for a mother in need. 80% of the time she will choose life. Visit CrawfordMediaGroup.net and click on their logo to donate. And by SunPower LED light therapy devices. Bring light to your pain. Visit CrawfordMediaGroup.net and click on the SunPower LED logo to get out of pain and improve your overall wellness. You can download this podcast from Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, and more from your local Crawford Media Group stations website or at CrawfordMediaGroup.net. And please give this podcast a five-star rating on your Apple app. Look for the notification on your app for when the next weekly edition of the National Crawford Roundtable podcast is ready for you to download. This is a Crawford Media Group production.
Episode 349-Iran, SCOTUS, and Virginia Gerrymandering