Rational Radio Daily with Steele and Ungar

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"North Korea is not denuclearizing itself." Mar 10, 2018

Show notes

At today's press briefing, White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders clarified that President Trump would not engage in “negotiations” with North Korea when he meets dictator Kim Jong Un. “We’re not in the negotiation right now,” Sanders said. “We’ve accepted the invitation to talk, based on them following through with concrete actions on the promises that they’ve made.” Sanders’ comments came amidst a firestorm of commentary from politicians and pundits on both sides of the aisle over President Trump’s possible meeting with the North Korean autocrat. Michael and Rick cover some of the viewpoints and share their outlook on the potential results of the meeting. The guys also discuss the Left’s surprising silence over the latest incident of Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan spewing anti-Semitic hate speech.

"We are about to give them what they've been asking for since 1954." Mar 09, 2018

Show notes

South Korean National Security Adviser Chung Eui-yong announced today at the White House that President Donald Trump accepted an invitation from North Korea dictator Kim Jong-Un to discuss denuclearization. The meeting, which is supposed to take place before May of this year, would be the first-ever meeting between a United States president and a North Korean leader. Is this a diplomatic breakthrough or just another major ploy by the famously manipulative North Korean leadership? Career counterintelligence officer Malcolm Nance breaks down the possible motivations behind the North Korean’s sudden détente. Tom Giovanetti, president of the Institute for Policy Innovation, a conservative think tank, warns that President Trump’s tariffs on steel and aluminum could bring an international backlash.

"If you're a consumer out there, your protections have been weakened." Mar 08, 2018

Show notes

The Senate is currently deliberating on the “Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act”. It seeks to update and reform some of the regulations that Dodd-Frank put on financial institutions in 2010. The idea behind Dodd-Frank was to protect consumers from another "Great Recession" and from paying for another massive bank bailout. As we approach the 10-year anniversary of the market crash, some Democrats have suggested that the Senate bill will loosen regulations that have kept the big banks in check. Ali Velshi, MSNBC anchor and business correspondent for NBC News and MSNBC, breaks down the contents of the bill and why Dodd-Frank does need revising. NYU professor Michael Oppenheimer laid out the evidence for how anti-globalist sentiment is influencing and upending politics around the world.

"When he [Trump] gets hit a certain way, he starts to draw a line." Mar 07, 2018

Show notes

Anthony Scaramucci wants to make it clear that he is not an apologist for President Trump. "I call the balls and strikes as I see them,” he said. Scaramucci sees himself as an explainer or interpreter of sorts. He explains the president’s unique way of doing business. It’s a continuation of what he tried to do in his 11 days on the job as the White House communications director. Scaramucci talks with Rick Ungar and Michael Steele about the chaos in the White House, the departure of Gary Cohn and the latest on Sam Nunberg and the Mueller investigation. Christine Campbell, president of the West Virginia chapter of the American Federation of Teachers, breaks down why West Virginia's teachers were on a nine-day strike and how they were able to come to a compromise with the state government.

"Get better candidates if you don't like the ones that you're getting." Mar 06, 2018

Show notes

E.J. Dionne, longtime columnist for The Washington Post, describes the current crisis of faith in our government institutions and representatives in his column “The cost of our war on public life.” He asks, “How did we get a government of this sort? For decades, our country has been witness to a war on public life. Legitimate dissatisfaction with government has turned into contempt for government itself and a denial of the indispensability of politics.” Michael and Rick assess the battlefield of public life in the Trump era of government and debate when and where the first battles were fought. Sam Nunberg, a former Trump campaign adviser, dropped several bombshells regarding the Mueller investigation in interviews on MSNBC and CNN today. The guys discuss the implications of those comments, including Nunberg’s allegation that the special counsel does have something on the president.

"I’m hoping this is Trump’s head wink." Mar 03, 2018

Show notes

After a White House meeting with CEOs of U.S. steel and aluminum manufacturers earlier this week, President Trump announced his intention to place tariffs on steel and aluminum imports. While members of the administration like Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross defended the move, domestic and international markets and governments responded very differently. The Dow plunged 500 points after the announcement, Canada threatened an “all-out” trade war and the European Union threatened to impose tariffs on American exports like bourbon. The president claims the tariffs benefit U.S. industries, but many who work in steel-dependent industries bear the scars of President George W. Bush’s one-year tariff on imported steel. Steve Lester, owner of QMF Steel, talks about the potentially disastrous consequences that President Trump’s tariffs could have on the steel business. Brandon Chrostowski, founder of Edwin’s Leadership & Restaurant Institute in Cleveland, Ohio, talks about his work trying to give former convicts a second chance at life through the restaurant business. “Knife Skills”, a documentary about Edwin’s, received an Oscar nomination for Best Documentary Short.

"Due process protections are a fundamental bedrock of our American society." Mar 02, 2018

Show notes

President Trump suggested an unprecedented violation of due process yesterday at a bipartisan meeting on gun control at the White House. While discussing gun confiscation the president said, “I like taking the guns early, like in this crazy man’s case that just took place in Florida ... to go to court would have taken a long time…Take the guns first, go through due process second.” Those words sent shockwaves across the political landscape and shocked and dismayed gun-owners. Cam Edwards, host of Cam & Company on NRA TV and SiriusXM Patriot, responds to the president’s comments. He also addresses second amendment questions such as whether the idea of a “well-regulated militia” is outdated or obsolete. Curtis Ellis, senior policy advisor at America First Policies, talks about President Trump’s decision to place tariffs on steel and aluminum imports.

"We're not honest about race in this country." Mar 01, 2018

Show notes

Last Friday night, CPAC communications director Ian Walters made racially-charged remarks about Michael Steele at the conference's Ronald Reagan dinner. He said Michael was elected as RNC Chair "because he was a black guy". Michael and Rick responded to Walters' repulsive remarks Saturday morning and continued this conversation Monday night. Today, Mr. Walters wrote an op-ed in The Hill to defend and double-down on his comments, disparage Michael’s management of the RNC and bash “fake Republicans on MSNBC”. Michael and Rick respond to Walters' latest comment. The guys also discuss reports that foreign officials from China, Israel, Mexico and the United Arab Emirates discussed ways they could acquire leverage on and manipulate Jared Kushner.

"We need a second special counsel." Feb 28, 2018

Show notes

On Saturday, the House Select Committee on Intelligence released the Democrats' memo on alleged FISA court abuses. Democrats wrote their counter-memo because they wanted to disprove claims in a Republican memo written by Committee Chairman Devin Nunes (R-Calif. 22). House Republicans say the FBI knowingly misled the FISA court in order to obtain a warrant to spy on then-Trump campaign aide Carter Page. Congressman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio 04), a member of the House Intelligence Committee and co-founder of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, talks about why he thinks the Democrats’ memo proves the FBI’s guilt. Georgia State law professor Eric Segall analyzes and handicaps three blockbuster cases currently sitting on the Supreme Court’s docket.

"Finally, it's out there." Feb 27, 2018

Show notes

CPAC communications director Ian Walters made racially charged and disparaging remarks about Michael Steele at the conference's Ronald Reagan dinner Friday night. Michael and Rick responded Saturday morning, talking with CPAC chairman Matt Schlapp and other guests about Walters’ repulsive remarks. The guys continue the conversation tonight. Both liberal and conservative pundits and politicians voiced their disgust about what Walters said. Michael explains how the conversations with Schlapp and Walters reflect his experience as a black Republican. Syndicated conservative columnist Mona Charen was booed at CPAC Saturday for calling out the hypocrisy of Republicans and conservatives supporting men who have been accused of sexual assault and sexual misconduct like Donald Trump and Roy Moore. She talks about the experience and how Trump has taken over the conservative movement.

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