Manufacturing Mass Delusion

Buck Sexton focuses on the rapidly escalating fiscal crisis in New York City. He examines the new mayor’s announcement of a massive expansion of the city budget—up to $127 billion—and a proposed property‑tax increase meant to close deficits and support surging expenditures. Buck contrasts New York City’s enormous budget with that of entire states like Florida and highlights the explosive growth in city spending since 2021. He breaks down the allocation of funds, pointing out that roughly 40% of the city’s spending goes to a public‑school system that consistently underperforms, and more than a quarter goes to social‑services programs, including extensive funding tied to illegal immigration.  He argues that the city’s fiscal model now revolves around propping up a failing education bureaucracy and expanding welfare systems while middle‑class residents shoulder the tax burden.

Buck frames this moment as a case study in the predictable failure of progressive governance. According to him, no matter how much money is taken from taxpayers, the left always demands more while blaming the same taxpayers for the system’s failures. He draws parallels between New York City’s fiscal spiral and the collapse of Venezuela, arguing that both represent the consequences of replacing sound economics and personal responsibility with envy-based redistribution and ideological dogma.

Calling Out Media Gatekeepers

Buck interviews FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr, who explains the rapidly developing controversy involving Stephen Colbert, Texas Democratic candidate James Talarico, CBS, and the federal equal‑time rule. Carr details how Colbert and Talarico attempted to frame CBS as being “censored” by the government after choosing not to air their interview, when in reality CBS simply instructed the show to comply with existing equal‑time law. Carr emphasizes that broadcast outlets using public airwaves must follow political‑content rules that do not apply to cable or streaming—and that talk shows falsely claiming to be exempt “bonafide news” programs have skirted these rules for years. He reveals that enforcement actions are already underway, including against ABC’s The View, and stresses that broadcast licenses require neutrality because they rely on public spectrum.

Buck and Carr then broaden the discussion to public misunderstanding of how broadcast regulation works, including why podcasts, YouTube channels, and cable networks face none of the FCC restrictions that apply to licensed broadcasters. The conversation also touches on the FCC’s parallel crackdown on robocalls, scam texts, and elder‑fraud schemes—an area Carr says federal agencies are now prioritizing due to widespread consumer harm.

Buck Learned from Rush

Remembering the legacy of Rush Limbaugh and his influence.  Buck talks about the podcast the team put together honoring Rush and how he learned from the best of the best.  Buck takes listener messages reflecting on Rush’s impact and the way his team continues to carry forward the show’s traditions. 

Menticide IS a Thing

One of the most heated topics in national politics: transgender medical interventions for minors. Buck discusses breaking news that NYU Langone, one of the nation’s leading medical systems, is discontinuing its gender‑medicine program for minors due to legal and regulatory exposure. He describes the announcement as a major turning point in the nationwide backlash against pediatric gender surgeries and cross‑sex hormone treatments. Buck argues that the medical establishment, advocacy groups, and political institutions have aggressively suppressed questions about long‑term outcomes, complications, and psychological risks, and that the ideology behind “gender‑affirming care” is collapsing under scrutiny. He connects this to the broader phenomenon of “mass delusion,” examining how propaganda, language manipulation, and psychological pressure have shaped public opinion, and comparing the movement’s reaction to classic signs of ideological panic.

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Hour 1 of the Clay Travis & Buck Sexton Show begins with Buck hosting solo while Clay travels to Mar‑a‑Lago for a Trump‑related event. Buck immediately addresses the major news of the week: the launch of his book Manufacturing Delusion. He describes the book as a deep dive into how mass hysteria and political manipulation have taken root inside the modern Democratic Party. He explains that the book draws on his CIA and NYPD experiences and includes stories he has never previously shared. The theme of “mass delusion” becomes the through‑line for the entire hour.

From there, Buck pivots into the day’s biggest domestic story: the rapidly escalating fiscal crisis in New York City. He examines the new mayor’s announcement of a massive expansion of the city budget—up to $127 billion—and a proposed property‑tax increase meant to close deficits and support surging expenditures. Buck contrasts New York City’s enormous budget with that of entire states like Florida and highlights the explosive growth in city spending since 2021. He breaks down the allocation of funds, pointing out that roughly 40% of the city’s spending goes to a public‑school system that consistently underperforms, and more than a quarter goes to social‑services programs, including extensive funding tied to illegal immigration.  He argues that the city’s fiscal model now revolves around propping up a failing education bureaucracy and expanding welfare systems while middle‑class residents shoulder the tax burden.

Buck frames this moment as a case study in the predictable failure of progressive governance. According to him, no matter how much money is taken from taxpayers, the left always demands more while blaming the same taxpayers for the system’s failures. He draws parallels between New York City’s fiscal spiral and the collapse of Venezuela, arguing that both represent the consequences of replacing sound economics and personal responsibility with envy-based redistribution and ideological dogma.

The hour then shifts to immigration policy. Buck explains why Democrats publicly claim to support “process” reforms while privately working to dismantle enforcement altogether. He discusses how legal obstacles—layers of appeals, administrative burdens, and procedural delays—are designed to make deportations nearly impossible even for criminal offenders. He highlights how the asylum system has been exploited and how the overwhelming majority of asylum applicants fail to appear for hearings. Buck stresses that walls and physical barriers absolutely work by slowing crossings and freeing border agents to make arrests, refuting years of media arguments to the contrary. He also details how non-enforcement at worksites and lax oversight of visa programs encourage illegal immigration by creating a powerful “magnet” of economic incentives.

The final section of Hour 1 examines the role of activist district attorneys—particularly Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg—in contributing to crime, chaos, and administrative dysfunction. Buck describes how Bragg’s policies intentionally increase the paperwork burden for prosecutors to the point where serious charges are dropped simply because the system is designed to collapse under its own weight. He draws parallels between this strategy and the left’s approach to immigration: bury the system in process until enforcement becomes functionally impossible.

Hour 1 concludes with listener calls, including a discussion about how cutting off incentives—such as illegal employment and government benefits—is essential to reversing illegal immigration. Buck agrees, emphasizing that the United States must enforce existing laws honestly rather than pretend the country can serve indefinitely as the world’s open‑ended safety net.

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Hour 2 of The Clay Travis & Buck Sexton Show focuses heavily on media integrity, government regulation, transgender policy battles, and the expanding national debate over political censorship. The hour opens with Buck interviewing FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr, who explains the rapidly developing controversy involving Stephen Colbert, Texas Democratic candidate James Talarico, CBS, and the federal equal‑time rule. Carr details how Colbert and Talarico attempted to frame CBS as being “censored” by the government after choosing not to air their interview, when in reality CBS simply instructed the show to comply with existing equal‑time law. Carr emphasizes that broadcast outlets using public airwaves must follow political‑content rules that do not apply to cable or streaming—and that talk shows falsely claiming to be exempt “bonafide news” programs have skirted these rules for years. He reveals that enforcement actions are already underway, including against ABC’s The View, and stresses that broadcast licenses require neutrality because they rely on public spectrum.

Buck and Carr then broaden the discussion to public misunderstanding of how broadcast regulation works, including why podcasts, YouTube channels, and cable networks face none of the FCC restrictions that apply to licensed broadcasters. The conversation also touches on the FCC’s parallel crackdown on robocalls, scam texts, and elder‑fraud schemes—an area Carr says federal agencies are now prioritizing due to widespread consumer harm.

The second half of Hour 2 turns toward cultural and political issues, including the legacy of Rush Limbaugh and his influence on both hosts. Buck takes listener messages reflecting on Rush’s impact and the way his team continues to carry forward the show’s traditions. This naturally transitions into broader commentary on political extremism, media groupthink, and the dangers of manufactured narratives—key themes Buck also addresses in his new book Manufacturing Delusion.

The hour then shifts to one of the most heated topics in national politics: transgender medical interventions for minors. Buck discusses breaking news that NYU Langone, one of the nation’s leading medical systems, is discontinuing its gender‑medicine program for minors due to legal and regulatory exposure. He describes the announcement as a major turning point in the nationwide backlash against pediatric gender surgeries and cross‑sex hormone treatments. Buck argues that the medical establishment, advocacy groups, and political institutions have aggressively suppressed questions about long‑term outcomes, complications, and psychological risks, and that the ideology behind “gender‑affirming care” is collapsing under scrutiny. He connects this to the broader phenomenon of “mass delusion,” examining how propaganda, language manipulation, and psychological pressure have shaped public opinion, and comparing the movement’s reaction to classic signs of ideological panic.

Listeners then join in with calls and talkbacks—some sharing personal stories about families struggling with the fallout of transgender interventions, others praising Buck for addressing the issue directly. These conversations further explore how language control, shifting definitions, and cultural pressure campaigns have reshaped debates over gender, medicine, and children’s rights.

Hour 2 concludes with Buck previewing Congressman Chip Roy’s appearance in Hour 3 to discuss the SAVE Act, election‑integrity battles, and the looming government funding showdown. The hour blends media analysis, government policy, cultural commentary, and personal stories, offering a wide‑ranging look at how political and social narratives are constructed—and how they are being challenged in real time.

Make sure you never miss a second of the show by subscribing to the Clay Travis & Buck Sexton show podcast wherever you get your podcasts! ihr.fm/3InlkL8

 

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Hour 3 centers on hard politics, election integrity, border security, the Trump economy, and how “perception management” and AI shape modern narratives. Buck opens by welcoming Rep. Chip Roy (TX) for a detailed breakdown of the partial government shutdown standoff and why DHS funding was separated: Republicans kept Border Patrol and ICE operating via earlier appropriations while Democrats, he argues, are holding TSA, the Coast Guard, and FEMA “hostage” to force limits on immigration enforcement. Roy outlines Democrats’ asks—extra warrant standards, constraints on field operations, and opposition to masks for ICE officers (citing doxxing and safety risks)—while noting openness to body‑camera requirements. He forecasts that flight delays or disaster needs could drive a quick resolution and reiterates that the House already passed a vehicle to fund the government; the ball is in the Senate’s court. 

The conversation pivots to the Save America Act, which merges the longstanding SAVE Act (citizens‑only voting) with a national voter‑ID requirement for federal elections (36 states already require ID). Roy explains: proof of citizenship at registration, voter‑roll checks against federal citizenship databases, and uniform voter ID at the polls. He notes it passed the House with one Democrat vote (Henry Cuellar) and presses the Senate to force a real, talking filibuster rather than accept the “zombie filibuster” assumption that 60 votes are required to do anything. Roy argues Majority Leader John Thune should lock down the floor after funding is settled, make Democrats defend opposing an “85–15 issue,” and let voters see who blocks election integrity reforms in an election year.

After policy, Hour 3 examines the economy under President Trump. Buck highlights robust performance and an on‑shoring/jobs boom, then plays a clip from Kevin Hassett asserting that incomes are outpacing cost‑of‑living increases and that growth is benefiting workers at the bottom more than elites. Buck frames the debate as wealth creation vs. redistribution, arguing that prosperity comes from creating more goods, services, and innovation—not shifting slices of a fixed pie. He contrasts this with New York City’s new budget and tax hikes under the new mayor, blasting a plan that would spend more than Florida’s entire state budget and send ~40% to a costly education bureaucracy despite failing neighborhood schools; to Buck, it’s emblematic of progressive governance that taxes producers and feeds “black‑hole” bureaucracies instead of growth.

The hour then looks forward at AI‑driven productivity: Buck predicts an abundance revolution—from autonomous vehicles to robotic surgery—and cites Elon Musk’s Optimus as an example of how quickly precision tasks could surpass human performance in limited domains. He argues that America will capture these gains only if it resists neo‑Marxist climate mandates and “woke” corporate directives that throttle innovation. This segues into a reading from Buck’s Manufacturing Delusion on the future of mass delusion: an anecdote about Google’s Gemini image results displaying historically inaccurate depictions; a warning that perception control (via AI, platform rules, and narrative enforcement) is the “most powerful currency” of our time; and reminders of how coordinated messaging during COVID, BLM, climate politics, and transgender policy showcased the speed and scale of modern propaganda.

Throughout Hour 3, Buck threads a consistent theme: pass Save America to protect voting, fund DHS without hobbling ICE and Border Patrol, keep the economy oriented toward wealth creation, and stay alert to how AI and narrative shapers can manufacture consensus. It’s a dense, policy‑heavy final hour that blends congressional mechanics, border enforcement details, macroeconomic optimism, and a stark warning about the power of curated information in 2026.

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On this episode of A Numbers Game, Ryan sits down with Oren Cass—chief economist and founder of American Compass—to unpack one of the most important economic debates in America right now: financialization.

Cass explains what financialization means in plain English, why the financial sector has ballooned into a dominant source of corporate profits, and how Wall Street’s incentives can become parasitic on the real economy—extracting value from productive businesses instead of funding long-term growth.

They also dig into Cass’s concept of “moral arbitrage,” where investors target industries that weren’t meant to be run for maximum profit—like nursing homes, veterinary practices, and even youth sports—and what that shift means for families, communities, and the future of capitalism.

In this episode, Ryan and Oren discuss:

What financialization is (and what it isn’t)

Why finance attracts top talent—and how it creates a brain drain from engineering and medicine

How “moral arbitrage” shows up in healthcare, elder care, and youth sports

Whether financialization makes America less competitive globally

Why low unemployment doesn’t mean the economy is healthy for workers 

The conservative debate inside the Right—and why critics often miss Cass’s actual argument AI, bubbles, and what today’s tech frenzy gets right (and wrong)

📌 Learn more at AmericanCompass.org

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Buck Sexton sits down with Lydia Moynihan of the New York Post for a wide-ranging conversation on the biggest stories dominating headlines. They break down the latest Epstein file fallout, media overreach, and the frenzy surrounding the Nancy Guthrie kidnapping case, questioning why wall-to-wall coverage continues despite few new developments. Buck and Lydia also dive into the SAVE Act, election integrity and the broader debate over transparency, accountability, and political narratives.

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TikTok - @BuckSexton                                                                                  

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Website – https://www.bucksexton.com/

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See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Buck Sexton sits down with Lydia Moynihan of the New York Post for a wide-ranging conversation on the biggest stories dominating headlines. They break down the latest Epstein file fallout, media overreach, and the frenzy surrounding the Nancy Guthrie kidnapping case, questioning why wall-to-wall coverage continues despite few new developments. Buck and Lydia also dive into the SAVE Act, election integrity and the broader debate over transparency, accountability, and political narratives.

Never miss a moment from Buck by subscribing to the Buck Sexton Show Podcast on IHeart Radio, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts! 

 

Connect with Buck Sexton:
Facebook –   / bucksexton 
X –  @bucksexton 
Instagram –   @bucksexton

TikTok - @BuckSexton                                                                                  

YouTube - @BuckSexton  

Website – https://www.bucksexton.com/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this episode of The Tudor Dixon Podcast, Tudor is joined by Mary Katharine Ham to break down the biggest moments and missteps from the Munich Security Conference—and why the global stage exposed serious cracks in Democrat leadership.

From AOC and Gretchen Whitmer’s widely criticized foreign policy performances to Hillary Clinton’s heated exchanges, Tudor and Mary Katharine analyze how messaging failures, lack of preparation, and “word salad” answers are shaping the 2028 conversation.

They dive into:

• What went wrong for Democrats at Munich—and why it matters

• AOC’s struggles under real questioning vs. media “protection”

• Whitmer’s 2028 ambitions and what her performance revealed

• Hillary Clinton’s reaction under pressure—and what it signals

• Why Marco Rubio’s speech stood out on the world stage

• The growing disconnect between progressive messaging and everyday voters

• How issues like Ukraine, Taiwan, immigration, and cultural identity are reshaping global politics

• What Republicans must learn heading into the midterms

Plus, Tudor and Mary Katharine discuss the broader implications for U.S. leadership, women in politics, and the future of both parties as the next election cycle heats up.

Like and Subscribe to Mary Katharine's Podcast 'NORMALLY'

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Why does it feel like something is deeply wrong in America?

On this episode of The David Rutherford Show, Rut breaks down the psychological and societal impact of deception in modern culture. From Covid policy contradictions to censorship, corruption, and elite manipulation, we explore why trust in institutions is collapsing—and what that means for the future of our nation.

Drawing from Dr. M. Scott Peck’s book People of the Lie, Rut examines the difference between mental illness and evil, the psychology of willful deception, and the small percentage of prolific liars who can destabilize entire systems.

If truth is the foundation of freedom, what happens when lies become normalized?

Next Steps:

• 🏫 Get coaching by David Rutherford: https://www.froglogicinstitute.com/
• 📕 Get David's novel, The Poet Warrior: https://www.ballastbooks.com/ballast-bookstore/the-poet-warrior
• 📰 Sign up for David's weekly newsletter for free coaching tips, updates, and more: https://davidrutherfordletter.substack.com/

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