Episode 20. Bankrupt States and Citizen Guinea Pigs

MIKE DONOVAN: The America that we are living in right now is not a free America.

It is easy to do what you're supposed to do in the good times. It's never easy to do what you need to do in the bad times. That is a life lesson.

Hello everyone. Welcome to another episode of the podcast, Not Free America radio. Mike Donovan, your host on this Wednesday, hump day… in a new America as we watch the onslaught against the civil liberties of the American people, the disorganization of our governments, and the beginning of what I think is unfortunately going to be a tremendous, tremendous depression. Good evening. I want to talk really quick.

We've talked about the rallies and protests at different state houses. We did have a reopened Virginia rally in Richmond. We had folks there. If you go to Breaking Through on Facebook or breaking through.com, you can see some of the content that our meaning our media company did. We had a reporter there and reported on that. You can take a look at that.

There was a protest in California and what's very, very interesting, and we talk about this all the time. The Bill of Rights, the constitutional rights. What are your constitutional rights? What's the first amendment say? It means you have freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, freedom of religion, right? So isn't it interesting that today in California, the California highway patrol band protest at the California Capitol and at any California state facility? Now this is again in direct contradiction to the first amendment and it doesn't make any sense.

If you really think that the people that are out there protesting are as evil as it would appear people think they are, then why do you care if they get sick? I mean, it's on them. They're the ones out there. They're the ones dealing with one another. What is it about your life that satisfies you so little that you have to tell other people what to do?

Because let's face it, folks, that's what this is. People who feel the need to tell other people what to do generally aren't happy. Why is it that our government feels the need in California, for example, to just step completely in abdication of the first amendment rights of the people of California. And why are so many Californians willing to accept it? You know, it isn't just liberal places like California. You know, the president of the United States -- I gave him some credit, when he came out and said that he thought it was appropriate to liberate some of these states that were on lockdown.

If you've listened to this podcast, you know, I believe the virus is real. I believe the threat to civil liberties is even more real and more lasting. And I think that we are making big mistakes when we abdicate our civil liberties. But Trump said, “liberate Virginia for example.” And I came on this podcast and I defended the president. Not something I typically do as a liberal Democrat. But now, today, Trump stands up and says he disagrees with governor Kemp out of Georgia. He was dog whistling Kemp to reopen Georgia. He was giving him credit for it.

So, the thing about the president and his leadership style, I think it works better when you're in an editing bay, like on the Apprentice. But when you're in real life and you're watching it happen, he just changes his mind all the time. And the thing is, I was thinking about this the other day, you know, sometimes I really find myself going, “you know what the president is right.”

But of course, anybody who does anything that they think the public or that they think would somehow elevate their image of masculinity… which is what I really think this is. He'll just say something completely different. He says he strongly disagrees with Georgia governor Brian Kemp's decision to allow businesses to reopen.

I distinctly remember a very different perspective from the president when Governor Kemp made the announcement. Now, again, if I were living in Atlanta right now, I wouldn't go to a bowling center and I wouldn't go to the movies on Monday. Because I would make that decision for me, which is what I should do as an American. So should you. And you should be able to make it. And what I thought the president was advocating in his series of tweets was just that. The president and his administration -- and Dr. Faucci, Dr. Birks, others -- very, very aggressive in this initial lockdown.

And the states got swept away with it. And then the president came back and seemed to contest the lockdown… and then the president comes back and now wants the governor's to -- or just discredits the decision of Georgia governor camp after advocating it. What my point is, folks, is that's not leadership. I don't know exactly what it is, but it's not leadership and it is a real problem. And it's not just coming from the president. We don't have strong leaders that we need today. We don't have strong leaders speaking the truth.

We had Texas Lieutenant governor Patrick speak up and we talked about that some yesterday. And then I had an opportunity to watch an interview today on Anderson Cooper, on CNN, with the mayor of Las Vegas. Carolyn Goodman is her name. Forgive me if I screw that up after I play this for you, you'll understand why it isn't really that important. In any event, she initially made a comment that I agree with largely as you all have known and heard me say again, courtesy of CNN –

“Your father, your brother, your sister, anybody, every one of those lives is a tragic loss. But when you count 150 versus 2.3 million, you have to say, we have to open up, we have to go back our bus drivers…”

So I mean, that makes sense. You know, 150 tragic deaths, but millions and millions of people and at some point life has to go on and we have to figure out a way to get past this. Hiding under our beds in our houses is not a workable long-term strategy and it never was sold that way. So why would we think so? So again, the mayor makes a good point, but even people making good points in today's America then go completely bonkers. Again, courtesy of CNN. Listen to this.

“… bus drivers are (OVERTALK) is saying that the numbers have been what they are. How do you know until we have a control group? We offered to be a control group. Anybody who knows anything about statistics knows that for instance, we have –” “So you are offering the citizens of Las Vegas to be a control group?”

Well, thank God somebody turned that down. So the mayor of Las Vegas in her infinite wisdom says, “Hey, you know what? Give all of the people of Las Vegas placebos. We'll be your Guinea pigs.” I don't understand. Where are our leaders? Where are our true American Patriots and I don't mean that in a way that a lot of my friends on the right mean Patriot. Not to say that I disagree with what they're saying either.

I just mean a person who believes in the constitution… a person who believes that in the face of danger and death, it is more important to be a free person, not less important to be a free person. Do you understand what I'm saying to you? It is easy to do what you're supposed to do in the good times. It's never easy to do what you need to do in the bad times.

That is a life lesson. We watch sitcoms that teach us this -- kids watch cartoons that teach this lesson. It is a fabric of every society in this planet and understanding. It's a coming of age awareness that at sometimes there are things that you have to go through, things that aren't pleasant. Sometimes you have to go through. We have to get through this because what we're talking about folks is not just a temporary abbreviation of our life. Pay attention. The talking heads, the propagandists, the government, they're ready for this to be the new normal.

An example tonight, Mitch McConnell says he favors letting states declare bankruptcy rather than appropriating additional aid to the states. Let me say something here. I don't necessarily disagree with Mitch. Now here's the thing, I disagree with him about everything. Really not a fan. But on the question of state bankruptcies, it is a worst case.

It is a bad versus worst decision. You're going to pump trillions of dollars that we don't have, that we're printing that's meaningless, worthless money… into these states and we are going to cripple any opportunity we have of getting this economy back for decades. Or we let the states declare bankruptcy, but what does that mean for public pensions? What does it mean for state services?

Could you see a situation where the California highway patrol is having their cars repossessed? That's what bankruptcy is folks… and it isn't legal right now for a state to declare bankruptcy. We've seen cities do it, but what happens if a state declares bankruptcy and can they? There's a contract clause in article one, section 10 of the United States Constitution that I think on plain reading prohibits states from declaring bankruptcy even if it's authorized by Congress. And it makes sense because under the Constitution, states are not allowed to walk away from certain responsibilities.

But I point this out not to criticize Mitch for his idea, but to point something to you as I wrap up tonight. This is the new normal. We aren't talking about how we're going to get on the other side of this. We're talking about being on the other side of this. And if where you are right now isn't where you want to live, get up, stand up and fight back. Because it's going to be too late before you know it.

This is America and this is the defining moment in this nation's history. We are alive for it. History has its eyes on us and we must respond. How will you fight to protect the American idea, the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and the ideation that a free people are the most powerful people on earth. Are we?

I guess we'll see folks. Stay safe, stay healthy, and see you tomorrow.