Transcript generated automatically by AI and may contain errors.
Chapter 1: What is the purpose of the Friendly Fire coverage for the State of the Union?
We are now part of the endless Friendly Fire broadcast live coverage of the State of the Union. That's right. By the time this is over, Andrew Klavan will be dead and Matt Walsh, his beard will be gray and he will have no hair. So, you know, a lot's going to happen in the next few years because that's how long we are slated to be together.
Basically, we are now doing the extended director's cut of all three versions of all three movies of Lord of the Rings, because that's what tonight is going to be. So we have with me, of course, Matt Walsh, who is suffering, and Andrew Klavan, who is likely to suffer with me even more. Somehow Matt begged out of part of the show, which I got to say, that's a smooth move. Yeah, I know.
I'm also confused as to how Matt is able to pull rank, and I'm stuck here all night with you, Klavan. as we go wall to wall on this coverage. It's a full-scale disaster. Folks, this is why you should subscribe for this kind of sparkling commentary. So I'll begin with Walsh because I'm going to get my money's worth out of Walsh. He usually speaks in these Friendly Fire episodes.
I actually got like, I don't know, 15 words.
Chapter 2: How do the hosts feel about the upcoming State of the Union address?
out of Walsh in a typical Friendly Fire episode, so we have to get all 15 of them in before the actual State of the Union address, which is to begin at 9 p.m. So, Matt Walsh, how pumped are you to be here for yet another State of the Union address? And can we expect your excitement levels to achieve the highest form of excitement, or will your soul leave your body in excitement?
How excited are you here?
Well, I don't have a soul to begin with, so it can't leave my body. What I'm excited about is that when you guys come back to talk about and analyze the State Union, I'm going to be fast asleep in bed. I don't know what story I gave them, but I'm just going to actually be asleep. That's the truth of it. Let's just be honest about it.
Look, I mean, I feel the same way you do, Ben, about the State of the Union addresses, that obviously they're mostly pointless, and if there's any kind of movement in the polls, it will last for five seconds and it won't matter anymore. So that's generally the case. I do think that...
If there's any, you know, if I were to predict that anything out of this or if anything, you know, makes an impact out of this speech, I would guess it's likely to be less what Trump says in the speech and more the antics of the Democrats. And I guess there's going to be fewer of them in the room now because a lot of them are boycotting. They're doing competing events.
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Chapter 3: What predictions are made about the Democrats' reactions during the speech?
They've got their own competing State of the Union. I saw someone mention on Twitter, it's like, it's literally the office. I mean, it's like something Michael Scott would do. And that's what they're doing now. But I expect that we heard about some of the illegal immigrants that are going to be attending, you know, Ilhan Omar and others along with her.
And so, but I expect that the Democrats in the room, they're probably going to get a lot of antics out of that. And so if there's any, if anything really makes an impact, it's going to be them embarrassing themselves. And I think we're kind of at a point, like, I mean, the State of the Union has always been pointless. I think we're all on the same page.
He should just send an email and be done with it. But if there was ever a time when there was any sort of function of the State of the Union, which I guess is supposed to be, you've got both sides that are there and they're kind of unified and we're hearing the vision for the country going forward.
And there's supposed to be a little show of kind of like unity and togetherness and some decorum and I think that's kind of the point of it, the pageantry. But that's out the window now. We can't do that anymore. Those days are long gone. And so it just makes it all the more like, why are we even still doing this with the State of the Union?
We're at a point now where the Democrats cannot even pretend to have any basic respect for the other side at all. They cannot do it. They refuse to do it.
and uh so i i imagine they're going to humiliate themselves and i agree with that and i think it'll be amusing to see what what sort of antics they play will there be juggling will eggs be hurled will they bring illegal immigrants into the chamber that was mentioned by cabot i had not heard that but again i think it would be fabulous if tom homan just started muscling his way through the democratic caucus with handcuffs and started dragging people away that would be the best version of this matt and i were actually in the room for this last time
And so, again, I'm jealous of Matt that he gets to, you know, go to sleep this evening. Andrew Klavan, I want to get your commentary on this because it will be your last commentary on this earth. Because while Matt's soul is likely to leave his body out of excitement, yours is likely to leave your body out of, you know, death.
But first, I do want to talk to you about the fact that you are still alive. And I feel like one of the reasons you are still alive is because you've been eating your fish. That's why. So I need you to tell me about Wild Alaskan.
You know, I am a lifelong fisherman. Not many people know this.
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Chapter 4: What significant moments occurred during the State of the Union address?
I used to fish every single day when I was young. I fished all over the place. I fished lakes. I fished in oceans and rivers. And one of my favorite places to fish was Alaska because you can pull a halibut. If you hook a halibut, they don't fight. They just hang there on the line. But they're really heavy, so it's like lifting a piece of lead. And they just taste great.
And that's why we can sell people with a good heart Wild Alaskan Company. It's the best way to get wild-caught, perfectly portioned, nutrient-dense seafood delivered directly to your door. It's not me delivering it, but it is my soul delivering it. You have not tasted any fish this good. It's 100% wild-caught, never farmed. And this means there are no antibiotics, GMOs, or additives.
Just clean, real fish that support healthy oceans and fishing communities. I mean, you're allowed to eat fish, right, Ben?
Yes, I am allowed to eat fish. That is the thing that I'm allowed to eat. But honestly, the person in my office, because of kosher reasons, who has been enjoying the fish is producer Phil, who's looking fit as a fiddle and ready for love, as they say. Well, apparently it is sustainably sourced, wild caught from Alaska.
Every order supports sustainable harvesting practices, and your membership delivers flexible shipments, expert tips, and truly feel-good seafood. Matt, I believe that you also are a fisherman. I'm surrounded by men of the wilderness. Matt, talk about how good this seafood is.
Yes, Ben. That's correct. I also enjoy fishing. It's one of my favorite things to do. And when I like to catch fish, but I can catch fish, but I prefer to have them sent to me.
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Chapter 5: How does the president address immigration and border security?
It's a lot easier that way. And I don't have to prepare it either.
Well, thank you for that sterling endorsement, Matt Walsh.
Not all fish are the same.
Get seafood you can trust. Head on over to wildalaskan.com slash friendlyfire for $35 off your first box of premium wild-caught seafood. That's wildalaskan.com slash friendlyfire for $35 off your first order. Thanks to Wild Alaskan Company for sponsoring this episode of Friendly Fire.
Okay, so, Andrew, I was calling on you, and then I immediately shifted into the way that we make money, of course, which is our ads.
So I'm going to throw it back to you because as the hours tick down on your life and you realize that you're going to have to spend the next several hours with me listening to an interminable address interrupted 1,273 times by applause, what are your last thoughts on this earth?
I had barreling into infinity. You know, what I like about the Democrats is the last time there was a State of the Union, they behaved so badly that even they must have felt if they have the capacity for shame, they must have felt a little bit of shame. I mean, you know, Trump was praising a child with cancer and they sat on their hands.
I mean, they just could not they couldn't applaud for anything at all. So the question was, they must have gathered together and thought, can we act like adults who respect our country and respect our fellow countrymen, taken a vote and said, no, we can't. So it's not gonna show up at all. They're gonna sit at the children's table where you can throw food until mommy finds out.
You can just play around and pretend that you're not part of the government. And I think that that's actually the state we're in. I think it is an amazing thing that we have reached a place where we have two major parties One of them is kind of incompetent, the Republicans, but the other one is actually out to destroy the country.
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Chapter 6: What are the economic achievements highlighted in the speech?
Like, no, no, don't make us take back our powers. Now it is kind of like having Caesar get up there and give a speech. So it's kind of a, I don't know, the whole thing is a disgrace on every side. And one thing you can be sure of is Trump will play right into that.
cursing out the Supreme Court. That's the part that, you know, I think that it's going to be an epic episode of Good Trump, Bad Trump, right? Which is something that I used to do on the show a lot was the Good Trump, Bad Trump. I think you'll get some very good Trump. He's going to call on the U.S. men's hockey team, which is going to be great.
And frankly, he should just call them down to the stage and just let them take the stage and then you should just walk out. I think that'd be the best version of this. My ideal state of the union here is men's hockey team at the front and Tom Holman arresting people in the back. And that's America. I think that's like the best version of this.
But I think that the high points will obviously be him calling out some of the people. Erica Kirk is showing up as well, which I think is a terrific invitation by the president, obviously, in the face of Candace Owens' tremendous evil, which I'm just going to put out there.
I'm hoping Candace Owens would fly by on a broomstick saying, send out Erica.
I mean, as a person who doesn't often use the adjective satanic, what Candace is doing right now is absolutely satanic to Erica Kirk. And I think Erica showing up at the State of the Union in honor of her husband so the president can talk about left-wing violence against right-wingers is absolutely good by the president, good on the president for doing it. I think those will be high points.
Again, I'll be a little surprised if the Democrats sit on their hands for those things because I think that would be so unbelievable. You're right, Matt. Last year, they literally sat on their hands for a kid with cancer. So anything is anything is possible at this point. But, Matt, I want to ask you, you know, if you were the president, what is the thing that you would say to turn this around?
Because obviously he's kind of sinking in the approval ratings. He's not doing great. The generic congressional ballot has the Democrats up five points. In all likelihood, that means the Republicans not only lose the House, but but probably the Senate falls to 50 50.
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Chapter 7: How do the hosts analyze the Democrats' behavior during the address?
You're advising the president for a moment. You're writing his speech. What do you tell him to do?
Well, first I would tell them, get a better advisor, because I'm the worst person you could probably ask this question to. And I will say that I do enjoy that this is the most cynical and depressing intro to a State of the Union. And we've given some bad ones. It just gets worse every year. But for good reason.
No, the thing is, and it's kind of funny because although we feel this way about the State of the Union, I mean, Trump does have actually things to celebrate. He has real achievements. I mean, let's start with the fact that closing down the southern border is a real significant historic achievement that has made America a better place. Doesn't solve all of our problems.
But it's something that no president was able to do before him. And that's not his only achievement. So he's got real things to talk about, real things that he can kind of brag about. And so if I'm advising him, it's real simple. Just focus on those things. I mean, yeah, the great patriotic moments, talking about the Olympics, going to the hockey team, that's all great.
But talk about the things that you've achieved, the real things. Yeah, we want to talk about the future also. What do you want to do in the future? But one of the... Part of the point of the State Union is supposed to be here. This is where we are right now. This is the state of things right now.
So it's kind of also a review of the past year and being able to highlight those things and also, again, being able to contrast that with how the Democrats react to it. I mean, politically, that's going to be very powerful because I think that As you mentioned, we saw this last year in the room that they refused to applaud anything. It didn't matter what he said.
And so I would guess, I mean, this is one prediction I'll make, is that when he has the line about political violence, condemning political violence, and he mentions Erica, I'm going to guess that a lot of Democrats are not going to applaud that because they're going to perceive that.
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Chapter 8: What impact could this State of the Union have on the upcoming midterms?
I agree. correctly in a lot of ways as a repudiation of them because all the political violence is coming from the left and these are the people that have explicitly or implicitly encouraged it. So I think even something like that, we're not gonna get a unified response and that will tell the American people a lot, I think.
So Drew, I'm gonna ask you the same question. You're now advising the president, and aside from telling him that he probably should not say that the Supreme Court is in the pay of a foreign power, and that also he's amazing at reading legal opinions, what else would you tell the president to highlight?
I think a key thing here, you know, the polls are really bad for the president. People are actually saying that they were better off a year ago. And it's hard for me to see how that could possibly be true. I mean, not only is the border closed, crime is down, drug use is down, imports of drugs are down.
All of these things have actually improved, but it's got to be about the economy and I think the affordability question. And the thing, I do not believe it would be possible to impress this on Donald Trump, but it's not a bad idea for him to acknowledge the fact that people are unhappy. You know, this is something I used to say through the whole Biden administration.
People were going, you know, the inflation is killing us. Biden's people would come out and say, no, no, you're really happy. Things are great. You know, I thought like, you know, I think people know when they can't make the rent. I think people know when they can't get their kids the Christmas presents they want.
I think they know when they're not buying the same foods they would be able to afford before. So if people are saying they're unhappy about the economy, they probably are. And there's probably no chart you can point to and no statistic you can point to that's going to make them feel better. So it wouldn't be a bad thing if Trump could muster up just that little mustard seed of humility.
And I know, don't laugh when I say Trump and humility in the same sentence. But if he could just muster that little bit of humility to say, hey, I know this is not going as fast as I wish it would. But it is going to go faster, and this is why. You know, and I think that that's just something that is not in Trump's repertoire.
And yet I think it would go a long way to just say, you know, it's not about – it's not always about Donald Trump. It's sometimes about the people, and the people do feel bad about the economy. I'm a little surprised by that. It does seem to me that things have picked up that not only has – has inflation gone down, but wages have actually gone up and outstripped inflation.
But apparently people are not feeling that yet, and hopefully they will soon, and hopefully that'll turn around the predictions about the midterms. So that would be my main thing.
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