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2,252 videos 1,362,132,946 views US Joined Aug 30, 2018

Charlie Kirk is the Founder and President of Turning Point USA, the largest and fastest growing conservative youth activist organization in the country with over 250,000 student members, over 150 full-time staff, and a presence on over 2,000 high school and college campuses nationwide. Charlie is also the Chairman of Students for Trump, which aims to activate one million new college voters on campuses in battleground states in the lead up to the 2020 presidential election. His social media reaches over 100 million people per month and according to Axios, he is one of the "top 10 most engaged" Twitter handles in the world. He is also the host of “The Charlie Kirk Show,” which regularly ranks among the top news shows on Apple podcast charts.

Donald Trump Jr. on the Most Amazing Political Comeback in American History and Why Exile Made Them Stronger

December 31, 2024

Donald Trump Jr. reflects on what he calls the new Day One, January 7th, 2021, when the Trump movement appeared finished. Speaking in Phoenix, Trump Jr. explains why the four years in exile were actually a blessing in disguise, how the team has transformed from trusting establishment figures to building a true America First coalition with JD Vance, Elon Musk, Bobby Kennedy, and Tulsi Gabbard, and why this administration is fundamentally different from 2016. He details his father's superhuman stamina, the behind-the-scenes fight to save Pete Hegseth's nomination, and how Maga supporters have become both the media and the government.

The New Day One: Rising From Political Exile

Donald Trump Jr. opened his Phoenix appearance by reflecting on what he calls the "new Day One"—January 7th, 2021. That moment, when the Trump movement appeared dead and buried, has become the defining test of loyalty for this administration. "Everyone was like, 'Well, I was there in '16 and '15,'" Trump Jr. explained. "Well, where were you on January 7th? Because there's multiple Day Ones. If you were at both of those places, that's pretty great. And that's really the applicant pool of who we're looking at right now."

The number of people who abandoned ship that day, Trump Jr. noted, is exactly what makes this administration so different. "Trump never had a chance, you know, back in '15. Zero chance of winning a primary, zero chance of beating Hillary Clinton. He was definitely getting impeached twice. He just kept coming back. Watching all of these people write you off so many times is actually great motivation."

From Chris Christie to Competent Loyalists

The contrast between the 2016 transition and the current one couldn't be starker. Trump Jr. recalled how unprepared they were the first time around: "In '16, we didn't know anything. We didn't know the first night my father spent in Washington DC was the night he moved into the White House. We were trusting Chris 'Krispy Kreme' Christie—that was our closest person that may have known something about Washington. And, you know, maybe he did, maybe he knew something bad."

This time is fundamentally different, Trump Jr. emphasized, because of the people involved and the changed media landscape. "Once you got a hold of X and watching the left right now just, oh my God, it's a right-wing platform—no, it's 50/50. You're just used to having an entire echo chamber to yourselves. You're not used to having to argue. You're not used to having to actually formulate an opinion because whatever you said was just the gospel."

The Battle for Pete Hegseth and Education Through Pain

Trump Jr. detailed how the MAGA base successfully defended Pete Hegseth's nomination for Secretary of Defense when it appeared dead just weeks earlier. "Two, three weeks ago, Pete Hegseth was dead according to the media. And then Maga got involved. People were vocal. They started calling out the more RHINO-leaning members of the Republican Senate, and all of a sudden everyone's back in line."

He introduced a concept he calls "ETP—Education Through Pain." While clarifying he didn't mean it in the physical sense ("some schmuck on CNN's going to take that as 'he's inciting violence'"), Trump Jr. explained how the ability to mobilize public pressure has changed the game. "We weren't able to do that in the past. Even if we had our voices out there, they were suppressed so badly while this sort of popular Democrat narrative was enhanced artificially. Now with a Level Playing Field, we can make these Representatives actually represent us for a change."

The stakes were enormous. "If Hegseth would have rolled, they would have set their targets on the next one. It would have been a dynamic shift for the next four years," Trump Jr. warned. He and others made clear to Republican senators: if you voted for Joe Biden's Department of Defense director and you won't vote for Donald Trump's DOD director, "we will primary you and remove you from office immediately."

Why Weak Republicans Surrender to Democrats

Trump Jr. offered a blunt assessment of why retiring Republican senators often give Biden what he wants while blocking Trump. "If you're a weak Republican in DC, it's an easy existence. You can be 90% of the way there, 80% of the way there, as long as you give up when the Democrats really need it or want it. They leave you alone. They don't show up in front of your house. You're not getting the hate mail editorial from The Washington Post."

He's witnessed the transformation firsthand: "I've been in the room. I've seen it a thousand times. I'll go do events for these people, try to help them get elected. You hear the things they're saying to the people—you know what, this guy's not going to be that bad, this woman's not going to be that bad. Then they get to DC and it's a totally transformed individual. They feel they really have to answer to the swamp far more than the people that they represent."

That dynamic is shifting because constituents are paying attention and have platforms to hold politicians accountable. "For me, when I get a hate piece from The Washington Post or the New York Times, I look at that as a win. It means I'm over the target. It means I'm actually being effective," Trump Jr. said.

The Fight for JD Vance as Vice President

Trump Jr. deserves significant credit for pushing JD Vance as Trump's running mate—a decision he made early and all-in. He explained his thinking: "I read his book when it first came out. I was like, wow, we need more people like this. Then I actually got to know him through some friends of ours, started hanging out with him. Man, this guy's a great talent, just totally gets it. Brilliant. Just an incredible upbringing, hasn't forgotten that upbringing, which is what so many people tend to do in politics."

Trump Jr. did what he called "the pre-endorsement, the unofficial pre-endorsement" during Vance's Republican primary for Senate. "You've got to be a little careful getting ahead of DJT," he joked. But along with a small group including Tucker Carlson, they pushed hard to make it happen. "Once I saw his performance in the Senate, I was like, there's not many senators you'd want to share a foxhole with, certainly even on the Republican side. But this was the one guy that I was like, wow, that's someone we can build a party around."

The selection wasn't just about the next four years. "For me, it isn't just about Trump. I actually believe in this stuff. I've been a lifelong conservative. I've always wanted this to continue beyond Trump. It's just not four more years great, and then we're back to the Mitt Romney, Liz Cheney party."

Building the Coalition: Elon, Bobby, and Tulsi

A year ago at AmericaFest, three major figures weren't yet part of the team: Tulsi Gabbard, Bobby Kennedy, and Elon Musk. Now all three hold critical positions in the administration. Trump Jr. played a key role in bringing Kennedy and Gabbard into the fold.

Through his business partner Omid Malik, a former Democrat, Trump Jr. began back-channeling with Bobby Kennedy. "As a former Democrat, I want you to know I'm friends with some of these people and you'd actually get along with them really well. There's a lot more that we share in common than we may not agree on everything, but a lot more."

Trump Jr. saw what Democrats were trying to do: "Ostracize him from their side, create a crucible against Trump, try to split that vote. I'm like, DJT actually probably agrees with 90% of what he's saying on so many of these issues." He coordinated with Susie Wiles and his father, keeping the circle tight to prevent leaks that could derail the effort.

On Elon Musk, Trump Jr. shared a telling moment: "He's there all the time. He's getting his mail there now. It was sort of funny—I got a great compliment from him early on in the first couple weeks with the transition. I was in a meeting, and I'm the guy that takes some pretty aggressive stances. In a room of people that are just a little bit more cautious than me, seven times he's like, 'Yes, exactly what we have to do.' It was just great to see people finally willing to fight."

Having someone like Musk—"maybe one of the greatest minds ever, certainly of our generation"—willing to examine government inefficiency is invaluable. "A guy that's done more in space than NASA that had a 75-year head start? I want that guy involved in looking at the rest of the apparatus of government."

President Trump's Superhuman Stamina

Trump Jr. shared remarkable details about his father's stamina during the campaign's final stretch. "The two days before the election, I watched him literally pull two all-nighters in a row, and I was dying. He's playing loud music on the plane at 4 in the morning. I'm like, 'I just want to die.' Then I'm watching—we land, it's 6:00 a.m., I get home, I take a shower, I'm going to try to take a nap for two hours before I get back on TV. And 7:00 a.m., I'm seeing him on TV and he's just going on through the day."

The schedule was punishing: Georgia to Palm Beach to Arizona to Nevada, two events in Nevada, then the Joe Rogan show, then to Michigan, ending at 3:00 a.m. President Trump spent 72 hours awake straight before the election. "This guy is 78 years old. He's 78 years old. I'm 46 and I'm dying, and I don't think anyone's ever accused me of being low energy."

Trump Jr. has seen this his entire life. "I used to get a call at like a Saturday morning at 5:00 a.m. Let's just say I was probably not in the best shape of my life at 5:00 in the morning in my early 20s on a Saturday. He'd be like, 'Hey, why aren't you in the office?' I'm like, smart-ass Don, 'Why aren't you in the office?' He's like, 'I am in the office. I'm standing in your office right now, and that's why I know you're not here.' I'm like, 'Give me 20 minutes, I'll be there.'"

Why Four Years in Exile Was Actually a Blessing

Despite the brutal four years of lawfare, congressional investigations, and political exile, Trump Jr. believes it was ultimately good for the movement. "As one of the most subpoenaed human beings in the history of the world—I don't think there's too many people that have done more than 50 hours of congressional testimony than me—that was brutal. It sucked. But the reality is, had we just stayed in office in 2020, you would have had the same guys that were there who didn't really belong."

Those establishment figures, Trump Jr. explained, were "unelected bureaucrats who just know better, so they're going to subvert the will of the people, they're going to subvert the duly elected president of the United States. They'll kick the can down the road, they're going to slow roll it. Now we're starting from scratch with people who are the true loyalists, the people who get it."

He described the challenge of finding the right people: "The concentric circles of politics are interesting. There's loyal, there's competent, and there's a very small intersection where those things overlap. I appreciate the loyalty—it's incredible, I love that—but it doesn't mean you should be somewhere in the chain of command. Not everyone who's loyal thinks they should be the Secretary of State. It doesn't always work that way, guys. I love you, but let's be real."

The reaction from the establishment confirms they're on the right track: "You see the reaction from the swamp, both the Democrats and even some of the establishment Republicans. When they saw this going on, they're losing their minds because they understand this is the one true threat to their hegemony. I think in hindsight they're looking back and saying, 'You know what, we should have just let it go.' Joe Biden didn't exactly do a lot for the Democrat Party. Running Kamala Harris in sort of a coup probably didn't do a lot for the Democrat Party."

MAGA Is the Party Now

Trump Jr. emphasized that MAGA has become the Republican Party. "It's important to understand—MAGA is the party now. That's not Trump. That's just people who believe in putting America First. That's what it has to be. There's not a Republican party anymore in anything other than name. That's maybe what we still call each other. It's about being America First. And it sort of feels like that's the way it should have always been."

Recent polls show this shift clearly. "It was funny—we were joking around on a text thread earlier. Some poll came out for 2028. It's JD, then me, basically dominating the entire field." The future bench is being built with people who proved their loyalty during the darkest days.

Trump Jr. closed with optimism about what this administration can accomplish: "I'm actually the most grateful guy that we actually did it this way than just had an eight-year straight term. Because I think what we can do now is exponential what we could have done. What we can do now could forever change the game. And that's something that's grossly needed."

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Video Transcript

[00:00] all right Don welcome to Phoenix man

[00:02] good to be here good to be back so uh we

[00:04] got quite a crowd our our members only

[00:06] crew is growing I mean your memb only

[00:08] crew is larger than like the entire

[00:09] membership of Turning Point the first

[00:11] time I one like this would have been a

[00:13] big turnout back in like 16 for you oh

[00:16] yeah the first event you spoke at was

[00:18] our winter and West Palm Beach event in

[00:21] Palm Beach this was like the combined

[00:23] attendance of that entire event and by

[00:25] the way by political standards that was

[00:27] uh huge so to speak with a capital Y uh

[00:30] but it's it's grown a lot it has so so

[00:33] don there's so much to kind of walk

[00:35] through let's go back to what you call

[00:38] Day One what we call the new day one

[00:40] January 7th 2021 yeah it looked as if

[00:44] the Trump movement was over we were put

[00:46] in Exile you never gave up we never gave

[00:49] up and now here we are today where

[00:50] everyone acts as if it was an obvious

[00:52] foregone conclusion that we're going to

[00:54] take back the White House take us back

[00:55] in time walk us through the most amazing

[00:58] political comeback in American history

[01:00] yeah no it was uh it was incredible I

[01:02] mean everyone was like well I was there

[01:03] in you know 16 and 15 and whatever is

[01:05] like well where were you in January 7th

[01:07] because there there's multiple day on if

[01:08] you were at both of those places uh

[01:10] that's that's pretty great uh and that's

[01:13] really the applicant pool of who we're

[01:14] looking at right now I mean the amount

[01:16] of people who you know jumped ship on

[01:19] January 7th and you know Trump was Trump

[01:22] never had a chance on you know back in

[01:24] 15 zero chance of winning a primary zero

[01:26] chance of beating Hillary Clinton you

[01:28] know he was definitely getting impeached

[01:29] twice he was he just kept coming back uh

[01:33] watching all of these people uh write

[01:35] you off so many times it's actually

[01:37] great motivation but I think that's

[01:38] what's so much more effective about this

[01:41] Administration this cabinet uh the

[01:43] people that are involved we just know

[01:46] you know in in 16 we didn't know

[01:48] anything we didn't know the first night

[01:49] my father spent in Washington DC was the

[01:51] night he moved into the white house uh

[01:54] you we were trusting you know Chris

[01:56] Krispy cream Christie uh you know that

[01:59] that was our closest person that may

[02:01] have known something about Washington

[02:03] and you know maybe he did maybe it was

[02:05] you know he knew something bad uh and so

[02:08] it's just so different which gives me so

[02:10] much hope it's why you see people trying

[02:12] so desperately now and it but it's not

[02:14] working anymore uh once you got a hold

[02:16] of X and you know watching the left

[02:20] right now just oh my God it's a

[02:22] rightwing platform it's no it's 50/50

[02:23] you're just used to having an entire

[02:25] Echo chamber to yourselves you're not

[02:26] used to having to argue you're not used

[02:28] to having to actually formulate an

[02:30] opinion because whatever you said was

[02:31] just the gospel and as long as you

[02:32] repeat the narrative uh you were

[02:34] rewarded with followers and likes uh

[02:36] it's just so different now the people

[02:38] are involved I mean you know when as

[02:40] we've been saying like we are the media

[02:42] now yes we're also the government now

[02:49] um I mean I mean it I mean you you you

[02:51] look at what's happening uh in the last

[02:54] few weeks I mean you know two three

[02:55] weeks ago you know Pete Heth was dead

[02:58] according to the media and then you know

[03:00] Maga got involved people were vocal they

[03:02] started calling out sort of the you know

[03:04] more Rhino leaning uh members of the

[03:07] Republican Senate and all of a sudden

[03:08] everyone's back in line and I call it

[03:10] ETP education through

[03:12] pain uh you know it's Charlie like you

[03:15] know it is but that's what it is it's

[03:17] you know not in the physical sense of

[03:19] the word you know gu some schmuck on

[03:20] CNN's going to take he's inciting

[03:23] violence you know you you know the deal

[03:27] uh and so you know we did we weren't

[03:30] able to do that in the past right even

[03:32] if we had our voices out there they were

[03:34] suppressed so badly while you know this

[03:36] sort of popular Democrat narrative was

[03:38] enhanced artificially uh now with with a

[03:41] Level Playing Field we can do that and

[03:43] we can make these you know

[03:45] Representatives actually represent us

[03:46] for a change I know that you know

[03:48] they're used to doing the bidding of the

[03:49] oligarchs in the DC swamp uh that's gone

[03:53] right now and that that's why it's so

[03:54] fundamental we just keep it up you can't

[03:57] do that and when people well this one's

[03:59] over and if if if hegi would have rolled

[04:01] they would have set their targets on the

[04:02] next one it would have it would have

[04:03] been a dynamic shift for the next four

[04:05] years but watching you know not just us

[04:07] but all of you uh you know get after it

[04:10] get involved call these people out you

[04:12] know whether it was physically whether

[04:13] it was on social whether it was on the

[04:15] media you know we turned a narrative

[04:17] around in like three or four days that

[04:19] the the you know the experts we all been

[04:23] hearing about experts for a while you

[04:24] can't be an expert by the way if you

[04:26] haven't been right in about a decade

[04:27] that you should lose your expert status

[04:29] uh you know but the experts were saying

[04:31] you know there's blood in the water this

[04:32] thing's over and you know the base stuck

[04:35] by their people and when we do that and

[04:37] we become unafraid and we fight back we

[04:39] win and that it's that simple and so I

[04:42] want to be very clear we said this and

[04:44] and Don and I were part of a few people

[04:46] that held the line for Pat heg and

[04:48] that's not over yet but that was a very

[04:50] telling moment because if we would have

[04:53] just kind of surrendered it could have

[04:55] derailed the entire Trump presidency and

[04:58] I I hope you guys understand that that

[04:59] the whole direction of the Trump

[05:00] presidency was in suspension I said and

[05:02] Don echoed and vice versa that if you

[05:05] are a Republican senator like Joanie

[05:07] Ernst or many one of these others and

[05:09] you voted for Joe Biden's Department of

[05:12] Defense director and you won't vote for

[05:14] Donald Trump's DOD director we will

[05:16] primary you and remove you from office

[05:20] [Applause]

[05:22] immediately we're we're actually

[05:24] watching that play out again I mean with

[05:26] the CR I mean you took a bill that the

[05:28] swamp would have Bly signed that had a

[05:30] lot of stuff that was bad and you know

[05:32] in 3 hours that thing was Dead on

[05:33] Arrival uh and again uh because of you

[05:39] guys calling it out we now have the in

[05:41] the ability to assess information

[05:43] rapidly uh not you know well pass it to

[05:45] figure out what's in it we've heard that

[05:47] for far too long now we can actually see

[05:49] it uh with a Level Playing Field you

[05:52] know on social we're actually all able

[05:53] to then chime in and you know in 2448

[05:57] hours we got a new bill that got rid of

[05:58] a lot of that pork and a lot of that

[06:00] waste and all of the things that

[06:01] everyone here voted against on November

[06:03] 5th it's funny they have a comparison

[06:05] right now on Twitter is that the other

[06:07] one was 1500 the new CR is like three

[06:09] pages long which is the way it should be

[06:11] by the way is that if you're going to do

[06:13] a CR and you're going to do debt living

[06:14] increase you don't need 900 different

[06:16] pages to get there Don what is it about

[06:19] this retiring Republican ideology from

[06:22] some of these Senators where they feel

[06:24] as if it's okay to give Joe Biden what

[06:26] he wants but not Donald Trump like it's

[06:30] not easily understood what it help me

[06:33] understand the psychology behind that am

[06:35] I allowed to say it's like a mindset can

[06:37] I say that on the Charlie C I'm not I

[06:40] I'm not quite as Evangelical as Charlie

[06:42] so uh I I

[06:44] I'm I'm I'm gonna go no it is there you

[06:47] know what it is I've been saying it it's

[06:50] if you're a weak Republican in DC it's

[06:52] an easy existence you know you can be

[06:55] like 90% of the way there you know 80%

[06:57] of the way there as long as you give up

[06:59] when the Democrats really need it or

[07:01] want it they leave you alone they don't

[07:03] show up in front of your house you're

[07:04] not getting the hate you know mail you

[07:06] know uh editorial from The Washington

[07:09] Post uh and so for a lot of these people

[07:12] they get to DC and they forget about the

[07:14] people who actually sent them there and

[07:16] what they actually represent I've I've

[07:17] been in the room I've seen it a thousand

[07:19] times I'll go do events for these people

[07:21] try to help them get elected because he

[07:22] I mean not not not in all cases but

[07:24] usually a weak Republican is uh you know

[07:26] still better than a d so you go there

[07:28] you hear the things they're saying to

[07:30] the people like you know what this guy's

[07:31] not going to be that bad or This Woman's

[07:32] not going to be that bad they're going

[07:33] to be fine you know it's maybe not

[07:35] exactly what I want and then they get to

[07:37] DC and it's a totally transformed

[07:39] individual uh you know they they feel

[07:42] they they really have to answer to the

[07:43] swamp far more than the people that they

[07:45] represent and again that's what that

[07:47] Dynamic shift is all about right now

[07:49] because the people they represent are

[07:51] actually paying attention they've been

[07:53] lied to Forever they no longer just have

[07:55] this Blind Faith uh you know that the

[07:58] person who they heard speak two days

[08:00] before telling them everything they

[08:01] wanted to hear checkpoint by checkpoint

[08:03] is actually going to do it in DC because

[08:06] guys like us are actually out there

[08:07] calling them out they see it and they're

[08:08] saying wait a second you know we're

[08:10] putting up their numbers in DC and you

[08:11] get a couple thousand calls from your

[08:12] constituents if you're a congressman or

[08:14] a lot more than that if you're Senator

[08:15] and all of a sudden they realize like

[08:17] hey The Jig Is up they're on to us we

[08:19] can't get away with it anymore uh you

[08:21] know if you're going to face

[08:22] accountability I like for me when I get

[08:24] a hate piece from The Washington Post

[08:25] with the New York Times like I look at

[08:26] that as a win like it means I'm over the

[08:29] target it means I'm actually being

[08:30] effective uh you know they don't view it

[08:33] that way it it we've not been playing

[08:35] the same game for far too long we've

[08:37] been playing tball while the Democrats

[08:38] have been playing hard ball I'm fine

[08:40] with either game but we have to be

[08:41] playing the same game and I think it's

[08:42] changing I mean with people like you JD

[08:44] Vance how great is JD Vance by the way

[08:46] isn't it just

[08:47] amazing and before I go any further Don

[08:51] deserves a lot of credit for pushing for

[08:53] JD Vance and understand the easy way out

[08:56] would have been a typical DC Republican

[08:59] and Don you pushed for JD why did you

[09:02] push so hard for JD I mean I did a small

[09:04] little thing but I mean you really you

[09:06] went all in if it was politics is a

[09:07] poker game Don took all of his chips is

[09:10] that right Don early and early and you

[09:12] said the hand haven't been even dealt

[09:14] yet like I'm in uh you know what I got

[09:17] to know him actually it was sort of

[09:18] interesting I you know I read his book

[09:19] when it first came out I was like wow

[09:21] like you know as you started seeing more

[09:22] like we need more people like this then

[09:24] it sort of went a different way and I

[09:26] actually got to know him through some

[09:27] friends of ours uh started hanging out

[09:29] with him man this guy's like a great

[09:31] talent just totally gets it you know

[09:33] brilliant you know just an incredible

[09:34] upbringing hasn't forgotten that

[09:36] upbringing which is what so many people

[09:39] uh you know tend to do in in politics or

[09:40] once they reach some sort of level of

[09:42] success uh you know got to know him

[09:44] really well and basically I I mean I

[09:46] sort of did the the pre-end endorsements

[09:49] sort of The Unofficial pre-end sement

[09:51] you know got to be got to be a little

[09:53] careful getting ahead of djt uh but I

[09:55] did that in the uh in his Republican

[09:57] primary when he was just running for I

[09:59] remember uh and then you know you me

[10:02] Tucker I mean you know there was a small

[10:05] band that just sort of you know really

[10:07] pushed to make that happen because again

[10:09] I think we recognized the talent we had

[10:10] the band with and the time to be able to

[10:11] spend there and figure out uh what this

[10:13] meant uh and once I saw his performance

[10:16] in the Senate I was like I mean there's

[10:19] you know there's there's not many

[10:20] senators you'd want to share a foxhole

[10:21] with certainly you know even on the

[10:22] Republican side but uh you know this was

[10:25] the one guy that I was like wow like

[10:26] that that's someone we can build a party

[10:28] around because for me it isn't just

[10:30] about Trump like I I actually believe in

[10:32] this stuff I've been a lifelong

[10:33] conservative I've always wanted you know

[10:35] I want this to continue beyond Trump

[10:37] it's just not four more years great and

[10:39] then we're back to like the Mitt Romney

[10:41] Liz Cheney

[10:43] party I I know that's yes I am saying

[10:47] what you're saying uh and you know so it

[10:50] was really about establishing that bench

[10:52] because that's what scared me when I

[10:54] when I looked at 16 to 20 um it was like

[10:57] well what is next there was no real

[10:59] standout there was no this I mean you

[11:02] know it was sort of joking we were all

[11:03] joking at the time it was like even for

[11:05] the 2020 uh 20124 primaries like before

[11:08] all that happened in the early stuff

[11:10] like you know I was first or second I

[11:12] was like well that's great I appreciate

[11:13] the compliment but like we need more Don

[11:15] 2028 what do you think

[11:17] God no JD 2028 JD 2032 Don 2036 now we

[11:24] got it all figured out okay well I mean

[11:26] it was funny we were joking around you

[11:27] know a text thread earlier there some

[11:29] poll came out it was basically uh for

[11:31] the 2028 it's it's JD than me uh

[11:34] basically dominating the entire field

[11:37] said 4% I I don't know where he was but

[11:39] it it was a far cry but it's just

[11:42] important to understand like Maga is the

[11:44] party now that's not Trump that's just

[11:46] people who believe in putting America

[11:48] First that that that's what it has to be

[11:51] there there there's not a Republican

[11:53] party anymore in anything other than

[11:55] name that's maybe what we still call

[11:56] each other uh it's about being America

[11:59] first and like sort of feels like that's

[12:01] the way it should have always

[12:02] been so so don we we look at this agenda

[12:06] and the team that we've put together can

[12:08] can you speak about some of these new

[12:09] arrivals in the last 12 months we had

[12:12] America fest last year you spoke you

[12:13] gave a great speech but I want to go

[12:15] through the list a year ago tulsey

[12:17] gabard Bobby Kennedy and Elon Musk were

[12:20] not yet part of kind of our team yeah

[12:23] amazing a difference a year makes right

[12:25] everybody now not only are they part of

[12:27] our team Elon Musk lives Mar Lago now he

[12:30] gets his mail can you speak that like he

[12:32] gets his mail he's there all the time I

[12:34] mean he's getting it's amazing he's

[12:36] there with his son X and uh you know he

[12:38] was really sort of funny I got sort of

[12:40] sort of a great compliment from him

[12:41] early on in the first couple weeks with

[12:43] the transition I was in a meeting and

[12:44] like you know I'm the guy that sort of

[12:45] takes some pretty aggressive stances and

[12:47] you know room of people that just a

[12:48] little bit more cautious than me and

[12:50] that just I like seven times he like yes

[12:52] exactly what we have to do and it was it

[12:54] was just great to see people finally

[12:56] again willing to fight a guy like that

[12:58] you know maybe one of the greatest Minds

[13:00] ever certainly of Our Generation uh

[13:02] willing to take the time to help set

[13:04] these things up right to be able to look

[13:06] into the inefficiencies a guy that's you

[13:08] know done more in space than NASA that

[13:10] had a 75 year Head Start uh like I like

[13:13] I want that guy involved in looking at

[13:15] the rest of the apparatus of government

[13:18] um and so that was great but no you're

[13:19] right I mean I I guess I had a pretty

[13:21] big part in in Tulsa and Bobby as well

[13:24] just talk about that well so you know I

[13:26] have a friend actually uh business

[13:28] partner partner Omid Malik former

[13:31] Democrat got sort of you know blindsided

[13:34] by a lot of the insanity of the left

[13:35] woke up uh became a donor of ours uh in

[13:39] 2020 became a real good friend of mine

[13:41] took a couple you know conservative sort

[13:42] of parallel economies companies public

[13:44] with me uh all these things we were

[13:46] fighting and he was like listen as a

[13:48] former Democrat I want you to know I'm

[13:49] friends with some of these people and

[13:50] you'd actually get along with them

[13:51] really well uh there there's a lot more

[13:55] that we share in common than you know we

[13:56] may not agree on everything but a lot

[13:58] more and he sort of started having me

[14:00] sort of back channeling with Bobby uh

[14:03] when I saw what the Democrats sort of

[14:04] were trying to do which was like

[14:06] ostracize him from their side create a

[14:08] crudel against Trump try to split that

[14:11] vote I'm like you know djt actually

[14:13] probably agrees with 90% of what he's

[14:15] saying on on so many of these issues I

[14:17] know they had a history in the past I

[14:19] was like let's let's just do this and so

[14:21] you know I basically got Susie WS

[14:23] involved and my father but basically no

[14:26] one else because if anyone else gets

[14:28] involved you understand what happen

[14:29] right the leaks happen on purpose then

[14:31] they use that leak to try to create a

[14:33] you know a divide uh then they can never

[14:36] possibly get them together which is why

[14:38] that didn't leak for the record I didn't

[14:40] leak you didn't leak you Charlie was one

[14:42] of the few confidants I was like listen

[14:43] I think I'm landing this plane like I

[14:45] got this thing uh he was like no you

[14:47] called me the day before you're like you

[14:48] don't have this thing I like you let I I

[14:51] doubted I was a doubting Thomas I was

[14:53] like Don you're calling the shot you're

[14:54] like it's done it's done it's done and

[14:56] you know the next day we did that and

[14:58] and what was so great about it for me

[15:00] was how well it was received like people

[15:02] actually wanted this stuff and like when

[15:04] you talk to Bobby and again you know

[15:06] when I first you know I'm I'm an attack

[15:08] dog right when he first came out I was

[15:09] like I'm going to attack and then I got

[15:10] to know him and started listening to the

[15:11] points I'm like this is exactly who I'd

[15:13] want at HHS or you're looking into the

[15:15] food and it's it's again create the

[15:17] transparency let people the biggest

[15:19] thing that Doge can do isn't even the

[15:21] the action it's showing the American

[15:23] people the trillions of dollars we have

[15:26] wasted on nonsense on garbage once they

[15:29] do that once the American people have an

[15:31] understanding it it won't continue you

[15:34] know but it's it's the stuff that's

[15:36] happens you know behind closed doors

[15:37] that no one really understands and they

[15:38] just assume it's being spent well uh you

[15:41] know all of these things and basically

[15:42] the same thing happened uh you know with

[15:44] Tulsi uh who I think will also do a

[15:46] great job there so uh it's great to have

[15:49] this sort of you know large tent we've

[15:52] always talked about that for a while

[15:53] we've welcomed so many and we've we've

[15:55] seen that play out certainly in the

[15:56] electorate but you know watching the

[15:59] Democrats basically you know eat their

[16:01] own for anyone who's not 100% in line

[16:04] with their insane talking points they'd

[16:06] lost their minds and they killed anyone

[16:09] uh who was reasonable who didn't just

[16:11] buy into the narrative and you know when

[16:13] you look at the sort of the diverse uh

[16:15] you know parties that are involved now

[16:17] the the background I mean how many

[16:19] former Democrats that have just woken up

[16:21] that are now a part of this

[16:23] Administration I mean it's it's

[16:24] incredible I mean this is actually a

[16:26] much more real representation of America

[16:28] than any the Democrats have put up in

[16:30] maybe ever so I want to open up to the

[16:33] audience in a second Don but I'm going

[16:35] to ask about just the questions I get a

[16:38] lot about your father about how he

[16:41] operates uh because it really is unlike

[16:44] anything ever seen and I mean from the

[16:46] stamina to the capacity to to not just

[16:50] campaign but just this life force and I

[16:52] mean you've seen it your entire life I

[16:54] mean one one one story that I could tell

[16:57] just from three days we were hosting

[16:59] president Trump back to back in Georgia

[17:01] and then Vegas I did a couple campus

[17:03] events in between a couple red eyes and

[17:05] I was like destroyed yeah and president

[17:09] Trump had like four campaign events a

[17:11] day went from Georgia to obviously Palm

[17:13] Beach to Palm Beach to Arizona Arizona

[17:16] to Nevada did two vents to Nevada then

[17:18] went and did Rogan show then the T to

[17:21] Michigan came back to 3:00 a.m. he ended

[17:23] up spending 72 hours awake straight

[17:26] before the election is that an

[17:28] exaggeration

[17:29] no he did not sleep for 3 days straight

[17:32] I mean this guy is 78 years old I mean

[17:35] just it's unbelievable right it is it's

[17:38] uh I've seen it sort of my whole life I

[17:40] used to get when I when I was younger

[17:43] and Dumber maybe a little Wilder on the

[17:44] weekends so like I'd get a call at like

[17:45] a Saturday morning at 5:00 a.m. let's

[17:47] just say I was probably not in the best

[17:49] shape of my life at 5:00 in the morning

[17:50] my early 20s on a Saturday and you know

[17:53] he'd be like hey why aren't you in the

[17:55] office I'm like you know smart ass Don

[17:57] it's like why aren't you in the office

[17:58] he's like I am in the office I'm

[17:59] standing in your office right now and

[18:00] that's why I know you're not here I'm

[18:02] like give me 20 minutes I'll I'll be

[18:05] there it's going to hurt uh no but you

[18:09] know you saw that with Rogan I saw it

[18:11] you know I mean I saw it just you know

[18:13] the day before the election I mean uh

[18:15] you know I consider myself a reasonably

[18:17] high energy individual we've seen what

[18:18] happens to low energy

[18:20] individuals I'd get you know thrown out

[18:22] the window of Trump Tower that doesn't

[18:23] work in our family and you know the two

[18:26] days before the election I you know I

[18:27] watched him literally PA pull two all

[18:29] nighters in a row and I was I was there

[18:30] and he was doing most of the speaking

[18:32] this was actually I I'm the guy that you

[18:35] know unlike most in politics like I

[18:36] don't just show up to be in the selfie

[18:37] in the background to be able to show

[18:38] people I was doing something I I say let

[18:40] him do his thing you don't need two

[18:42] trumps in a room send me where he can't

[18:43] be I'm not looking for credit like I

[18:46] just I don't do that but like the last

[18:48] like basically two days I wanted to be

[18:50] there just because of the historical

[18:51] moment I just wanted to you know and uh

[18:54] we had done everything we needed to do

[18:55] and I'm I'm watching them do this and

[18:57] literally two all nighter in a row and

[18:59] I'm dying and he's playing like loud

[19:02] music on the plane at 4 in the morning

[19:04] I'm like I just want to die like we like

[19:07] I'm like what what is going on here you

[19:09] know and then I'm I'm watching we land

[19:12] it's 6:00 a.m. I get home I take a

[19:15] shower I'm going to go try to take a nap

[19:16] for two hours before I get back on TV

[19:19] and 700 a.m. I'm seeing him on TV and

[19:22] he's just going on through the day and

[19:23] then we go into election night and it's

[19:25] you know in another night where he left

[19:28] the you know the auditorium at like 56

[19:30] in the morning it 72 hours he's 78 years

[19:33] old like I'm 46 and I'm like I'm

[19:36] dying uh and I don't think anyone's ever

[19:39] accused me of being low energy so it's

[19:40] like you know that's a that's a pretty

[19:41] solid Benchmark I mean it's just it is

[19:44] uh where does that come from Don is

[19:45] thatan I think he's just always had it

[19:46] he's never been much of a sleeper he's

[19:48] always been you know passionate uh he's

[19:52] a he's a true competitor and he actually

[19:53] does better you know most people fail

[19:55] Under Pressure he's one of those guys

[19:57] that just does better right we talked

[19:58] about res when we started this and you

[20:00] know when you look at the times he's

[20:01] been counted out uh whether it was in

[20:04] business whether it was like just he

[20:06] just continues to be able to fight back

[20:09] and and when he's put under that

[20:10] pressure he just does better it it's

[20:13] it's it I don't think we'll ever see

[20:15] anything like that in politics again do

[20:16] you think that the four years off that

[20:19] we had Exile was good for us 100% like

[20:23] it's not even CL and trust me uh as one

[20:26] of the most subpoena uh human beings in

[20:29] the history of the world as I you know I

[20:31] don't know how many people I don't think

[20:32] there's too many people that have done

[20:33] more than 50 hours of congressional

[20:35] testimony than me so like that was

[20:36] another you know uh you know the four

[20:39] years of hell that we went through

[20:40] whether it's the lawfare the you know

[20:42] just everything the laware the Exile the

[20:46] the attempt of the swamp to push us out

[20:48] the attempt of the Republican party to

[20:49] push you know sort of Maga out uh that

[20:52] was brutal it sucked uh but uh I think

[20:56] the reality is had we just stayed in

[20:58] office in 2020 you would have had the

[21:00] same guys that were there who didn't

[21:03] really belong that were you know some of

[21:05] whom are fine you know maybe two or

[21:07] three guys that were great but like not

[21:08] many uh you would had those same people

[21:11] that were the unelected bureaucrats they

[21:12] just know better so they're going to

[21:14] subvert the will of the people they're

[21:16] going to subvert the duly elected

[21:17] president of the United States they'll

[21:18] kick the Canon down the road they're

[21:19] going to slow roll it now we're starting

[21:22] from scratch uh we with we're starting

[21:25] from scratch with people who are the

[21:26] true loyalists uh the people who get it

[21:29] the PE you know the concentric circles

[21:31] of politics are interesting right

[21:32] there's like there's like loyal there's

[21:34] competent and you know there's a very

[21:36] small intersection where where those

[21:38] things overlap uh you know we actually

[21:41] know who and l i I appreciate the

[21:43] loyalty is incredible I love that but

[21:44] like doesn't mean you should be like you

[21:46] know somewhere in the chain of command

[21:48] not you know everyone who's loyal thinks

[21:49] they should be you know the Secretary of

[21:51] State or you know it doesn't always work

[21:53] that way guys I love you but like let's

[21:55] be real uh you know now we know where

[21:57] that concentric Circle is and putting

[21:59] these people into those positions uh is

[22:02] so powerful I think again you see the

[22:04] reaction from the swamp both the

[22:05] Democrats and even some of the

[22:06] establishment Republicans when they saw

[22:08] this going on they're losing their minds

[22:11] because they understand this is the one

[22:12] true threat to their hegemony uh I think

[22:15] in in hindsight they're looking back and

[22:16] be like you know what we should have

[22:17] just let it go Joe Biden didn't exactly

[22:20] do a lot for the Democrat Party uh

[22:22] running Camala Harris in sort of a coup

[22:25] probably didn't do a lot for the

[22:26] Democrat Party I think it actually done

[22:27] us a lot of favors opened up a lot of

[22:29] eyes to the insanity uh to the lies they

[22:33] were able to cover that up so much more

[22:35] effectively than in past that's done and

[22:37] so you know I'm actually like the most

[22:39] grateful guy that we actually did it

[22:42] this way uh than just had an eight-year

[22:45] straight term because I think what we

[22:47] can do now is exponential what we can do

[22:49] now uh you know could forever change the

[22:53] game and that that's something that's

[22:54] grossly needed

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