The Rod and Greg Show: Utah Teachers Receive Another Raise; Voter Referendums on School Board Decisions

Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
If you aren't aware, if you're just joining us, haven't
been able to stay up on the news of the day.
Today there was a quite a would you call it
a tiff?

Speaker 2 (00:09):
I'd say it was an opinion?

Speaker 1 (00:13):
What would you call it? Well, normally, when you you know,
you you've you've seen this all week where international leaders
have come in and met with the president and they
sit in front of that night's fireplace and there's what
they call a camera spray that the cameras get all
their pictures. He may may take a few questions, but
then when they really talk substance, of course, they go
behind closed doors. Right, Yep. Didn't happen today. Apparently, somehow

(00:36):
this what was going to be a photoshoot between Zelenski
and President Trump prior to the signing of this new
mineral agreement, kind of got carried away and kind of
blew up all of a sudden, and it was something
I don't think the American people have ever seen.

Speaker 3 (00:51):
No, And you know what, I'm glad we saw it.
Talk about transparency. Let's just let's just get it out
and let's have the discussion. The interesting thing is that
you don't get to to a White House even Oval
Office meeting like that which was going on. It's like
forty minutes they were together or more without a lot
of those details ironed out, already agreed upon. The pinch

(01:12):
points have been shared with Zelensky's shared to President Trump.
Their negotiators have gotten all this stuff worked out before
you ever arrive in the United States. For Zielinsky or
to the White House and into the Oval Office, for
that exchange to go so badly means that and clearly
they were seeing the world. I mean, Zelensky's position is this,

(01:33):
there is no negotiating with Russia. There is no way
you're going to be able to They won't honor a
cease fire. Well, everything Trump's doing is meant to create
a ceasefire. Trump was even yesterday talking about getting Ukraine
land back from Russia with a perfect combination of American

(01:54):
interests of needing rare minerals, having an economic alliance that
it is in the un uned State's best interest to
protect Ukraine as well as have this need for access
to rare minerals, which sadly Biden's let China control the
whole planet in regard to you. As so, this is
an economic alliance that I would argue is even more

(02:14):
powerful than NATO. I really do, because NATO's basically the
United States. No one else pays their bills on this thing.
So this is an incredible opportunity and it makes all
the sense. And he basically refuted all the points that
Trump was trying to make about ceasefires, about finding a
way to get them their land back, because he said
none of them can be trusted. You can't do any

(02:35):
of this. He got pretty argument.

Speaker 1 (02:37):
Yeah he did. As a matter of fact. I mean they,
I think this relationship can be recovered, Greg, I mean
Selensky needs US, Ukraine needs the United States. Donald Trump
told them today, you want to go on your own, Okay,
see you later, but we want to form an economic
partnership with you and to be able to give you

(02:57):
two things, stability and the prospects for economic growth. That's
what he's trying to do. And you know, I don't
know where's Lelynsky is coming. I think both men, I
think want to well, I know President Trump wants to
end this war, and I think Zilinsky the same thing,
But how do we get him there? Donald Trump was
offering a way to do so with this mineral deal,

(03:18):
and I don't know if he rejected, I don't know
what happened to it today. It just blew up.

Speaker 3 (03:23):
The problem is, I think he's had his way for
so long with the Biden administration. I think he lives
in maybe an information bubble where the international media, maybe
world leaders, have fed him a narrative where he felt
he had a lot more power and leverage and really
if he brought it up in front of the media,
thought he could potentially paint President Trump into a corner. Yeah,

(03:46):
that was the wrong calculation. He came, as you saw,
I believe, completely unprepared for that meeting. And if it
was just him losing his temper, then he's not the
world leader that needs to navigate Ukraine and a piece
to to get this thing, this war over with, because
he doesn't have the disposition for it. I've actually watched
the news since this blow up happened. Even Biden, who

(04:09):
we could argue isn't always always there, lost his temper
Leski when he's trying to help him, and he keeps
complaining as he's getting USA. And finally Biden, on a
conversation on the foot hat it and said, you know what,
a little gratitude would be nice instead of listening to
you yell about more. And even Biden was upset with him.

Speaker 1 (04:28):
Yeah, and that's what That's what Trump and JD. Van
said today. You know, a little gratitude would go a
long way in us trying to help you. But apparently,
and he said, thank you, thank you, Well, does he
really mean it? Why do you have to point out gratitude?

Speaker 4 (04:41):
Well?

Speaker 3 (04:41):
And he kept speaking over the president. He got really
mad at Vice President Jade Vance. And I just think
that all those there were no new details. There wasn't
like somebody just threw out a concept to him. He
did not already hear, and that they had not already
found agreement. You don't go in live to that photo
op or that meeting not knowing what's going to happen next.

(05:02):
They were fully prepared to have that agreement made. And
somebody in that room went south. And it wasn't the
president because they kept asking him and he'd said, we'll see,
we'll see. He says that you know that they can't
be trusted, We'll see, we'll see. He kept trying to
be more, you know, just more vague about it all.

Speaker 2 (05:19):
Yeah, Zelenski just wouldn't give it up.

Speaker 1 (05:20):
Well, here are a few sound bites from.

Speaker 5 (05:22):
It's me that was with Obama, who gave you sheets?
And I gave you javelins. Yes, I gave you the
javelins to take out all those tanks. Obama gave you sheets.
In fact, the statement is Obama gave sheets and Trump
gave javelins.

Speaker 1 (05:38):
You got he doesn't come along with this and help
us with this mineral deal. Ukraine's in big trouble.

Speaker 6 (05:43):
Your country is in big trouble. No, No, He've done
a lot of talking. Your country is in big trouble.

Speaker 2 (05:49):
I know you're not winning.

Speaker 6 (05:50):
You're not winning this. You have a damn good chance
of coming out okay, because.

Speaker 7 (05:55):
Of the resident we're staying Yawa country staying strong. From
the very beginning of the we've been alone and we
have I said, Cabinet, we gave.

Speaker 6 (06:06):
You, stupid president, three hundred and fifty billion dollars. Will
we gave you military equipment?

Speaker 5 (06:12):
You well, you men have brave, but they had to
use our military one of if you didn't have our
military equipment, if you didn't have our military equipment, this
war would have been over into weeks.

Speaker 1 (06:23):
And then Vice President J. D. Vance decided to get
into the conversation.

Speaker 8 (06:27):
I'm talking about the kind of diplomacy that's going to
end the destruction of your country. Yes, but if you
have president with respect, I think it's disrespectful for you
to come into the Oval Office to try to litigate
this in front of the American media. Right now, you
guys are going around and forcing conscripts to the front
lines because you.

Speaker 1 (06:43):
Have manpower problems.

Speaker 8 (06:44):
You should be thanking the president to bring into this cove.

Speaker 7 (06:48):
Into Ukraine that you say, what problems we have.

Speaker 1 (06:51):
I have been to come once.

Speaker 8 (06:52):
I have actually I've actually watched and seen the stories,
and I know what happens is you bring people, you
bring them on a propaganda tour. Mister President are do
you disagree that you've had problems with bringing people in
your military and do you think that it's respect allots
to come to the Oval Office in the United States
of America and attack the administration that is trying to

(07:13):
trying to prevent the destruction of your cont A.

Speaker 7 (07:15):
Lot of questions. Let's start from the beginning.

Speaker 1 (07:18):
Sure, first wall, during.

Speaker 7 (07:19):
The war, everybody has problems, even you, but you have
nice otion and don't feel now but you will feel
it in the future.

Speaker 6 (07:28):
God bless you, God bless You're God blessed.

Speaker 4 (07:31):
You don't know.

Speaker 5 (07:32):
Don't tell us what we're going to feel. We're trying
to solve a problem. Don't tell us what we're going
to feel.

Speaker 1 (07:37):
Well, there you got just a little bit of the Uh.
It was a pretty good what twenty thirty minute exchange
between the three men over what was going on and Uh,
it was something we have never seen before, negotiations transparent
as could be.

Speaker 3 (07:53):
Yeah, and you know what, I I have a lot.
I mean Lindsey Graham, who I have not been a
fan of lately, who's been such and neo khon hawk.
He just wants every war. He called for Zelenski's resignation
as President of Ukraine. Today He's been one of his
strongest allies in that swamp to my frustration. Frankly, but

(08:13):
even Lindsey Graham cannot believe his ears. He cannot believe
he came in there to be argumentative and to be combative.
Right now, Zelensky, as I've seen on social media, he
is taking and cutting and pasting the world leaders who
are responding to this exchange saying we support you.

Speaker 9 (08:30):
Uh.

Speaker 3 (08:31):
President Zelensky, we support you on on. So he's posting
this to show the world. Hey, Europe's on my side. Okay,
good luck, I say good luck, good luck. I think
that's a wonderful life. Yeah, okay, Europe. You've got a
problem with Russia. Because here's the problem, here's the bigger problem.
Trump has to get this deal where he will absolutely
be able to articulate to Putin. We have national security interests.

(08:55):
We have interests now that we you aren't going to
interfere with the United States. It's our interest Now, I
don't care. You didn't ever you thought you had an
opinion about Ukraine. Now you have to have an opinion
about us. That's how Trump's going to go in to
talk to Putin. Okay, Putin has to believe that whatever
Trump is saying about what will happen next, because now,
you Putin, you've got a problem with the United States.

(09:16):
If if Zelensky's behind him, undermining him, or saying that
he doesn't trust any agreement that the two are going
to make, how is Trump supposed to negotiate that peace treaty?
How is how is Putin going to be convinced to
give up territory in Ukraine. If his ally in real
time is just absolutely berating the United States for not

(09:37):
enough help or not understanding what they're going through, whatever
it may be, is it does not give the president
the negotiating power he needed to really argue the America's
interests with Putin.

Speaker 1 (09:50):
Well, this certainly blew up today, and Zlensky sent a
text after that media, after you got care how'd you
like to be kicked out of the White House? Just leave, leave,
would you? But he sent a text he wants you
know he's proud of the American people for their support.
The President is on his way back to Florida. We'll
see if Zelensky heads to Florida this weekend. This story
isn't over as of yet. We've got a lot to

(10:10):
get to today. Thanks for joining us here on the
Rod and Greg Show and Utah's Talk Radio one oh
five nine knrs. To me, as I'm listening to what
he's saying, Greg, I don't know if there are enough
security guarantees in this agreement to make him happy, because
apparently he feels like he needs more security in this agreement. Yeah,

(10:32):
and I think that may be an indication American boots
on the ground, but that's not going to happen. So
I think he's looking for security here.

Speaker 3 (10:40):
Ornsky's crazy and I'll tell you why. I know he's
really off kilter here. He's he is in an interview
that we just played live that he is trying to
express Brett Baar on Fox News, is that because there
were American companies that were in Ukraine operating with offices,
and that Putin came in and took him over and
didn't care that America's presence and a mining agreement with

(11:02):
rare minerals will mean nothing to Putin if he thinks
that whatever the arrangement was with these American companies with
Ukraine for him will be the same way Putin looks
at it. From Donald President of the United States of America,
who puts this deal together himself, he has a he
has an oversized opinion of himself, this President Zelenski does

(11:25):
because when when Trump puts this deal together with their
interests in line, that.

Speaker 2 (11:30):
Is a very different story.

Speaker 3 (11:31):
And he plans to engage directly with President Putin because
of American interest joint interest with Ukraine. He's trying to say,
as long as he's trying to say, well, you had
American companies before. Putin didn't care pal, you aren't President Trump.
Ukraine is not the United States of America. It is
a completely different dynamic. What was to be signed today,
and I wouldn't sign it with this president, Well, I

(11:52):
wouldn't do it. I would be done with him.

Speaker 1 (11:54):
Well, and I think what is he I don't think
he understands that Donald Trump is not you Biden. Now,
the Russians can go in and go after some of
those those American contractors, and Biden won't do anything about it. Ye,
Putin tries that with the United States, Donald Trump will
do something about it.

Speaker 3 (12:11):
He has so undermined President Trump's ability to have an
aggressive and good peace agreement where Putin has to give
and retreat from lands that they invaded and occupied. He
has not given President Trump or the or America any
ability to negotiate that as he's undermining, Yes, his efforts

(12:32):
behind him. If if Putin sees this, he knows Trump's
not speaking for anyone these guys, I just cannot believe.
And again, I mean on the lowest level, like when
I was speaking of the House and we're working on
Operation Real Grand and our staff at the mayor's office,
in our office are trying to come up with agreements.
There's so much many pinch points, and you're talking before

(12:55):
you come together. And I would come together with the government,
go with the mayor of Saltlake. You know what the
deal looks like. He might even have a couple of
little points, but most of it's been plowed before you
get public.

Speaker 2 (13:06):
This agreement had been agreed upon before they arrived.

Speaker 1 (13:09):
The pinch points were done.

Speaker 3 (13:11):
It were done for him to relitigate it, for him
to start arguing, for him to start chastising Trump.

Speaker 10 (13:17):
And JD.

Speaker 3 (13:17):
Van said that the Putin cannot be trusted. All of
this is already understood in the agreement. And so you
wanted to sign an agreement with the United States, and
I just I would not. You got to have good partners,
and I don't know that what happens that way one, Yeah,
And I just don't think you don't think.

Speaker 1 (13:35):
You don't think that Donald trust does not trust Vladimir Putin. Hey,
he doesn't trust trust. He knows it.

Speaker 3 (13:42):
But you know what he is going to sit and look,
a good example, Rod would be this little little Marco.
Remember in twenty sixteen. What do you call Marco Rubia
Little Marco. Little Marco, you would say, well, he has
no respect from he's his current secretary of State. Okay,
there is gamesmanship, there's brinkmanship, there is new go siation,
and then there is coming together. And Zelensky doesn't even

(14:04):
let that happen. So that America can help this country
and do it the right way.

Speaker 1 (14:10):
It's interesting. We're going to see what happened. Could be
an interesting weekend if these two get together again. We'll
have to wait and see. All Right, more coming up,
big news today coming out of the state Capitol when
it comes to teachers here in Utah. We'll talk with
the president of the Utah Senate. Coming up next right
here on the rod that Greg Joe and Talk Radio
one oh five nine can arrest.

Speaker 3 (14:29):
If it was the intention of Zelensky and you in
the Ukraine to ally with or have the United States
and President Trump lead out in a peace agreement and
have their land taken, restore that's been taken from them,
I would think they would understand that the president has
to look pretty unified. Yeah, and that undercutting him in
public like that does not put the United States or

(14:52):
the president in a position of strengths with with Putin.

Speaker 2 (14:55):
Or Moscow or Russia.

Speaker 3 (14:57):
Russia's watching this right now, laughing, And I mean, there's
no strength for the United States in this position, the
one that Zelensky just put him into. You.

Speaker 2 (15:07):
How could they have that he could have that.

Speaker 3 (15:08):
Argument with him for the world to see and to
show that there was this chasm that apparently them coming
together was supposed to say the very opposite.

Speaker 1 (15:17):
Yeah, didn't do it.

Speaker 3 (15:18):
It's a bad, bad way to I don't think he's
he can stay the president of Ukraine and see the
United States be there as a way to broker piece.

Speaker 1 (15:27):
All right, Well, the big story here in the state
of Utah today. The governor and legislative leaders held the
news conference today to announce a pay raise for Utah teachers.
Joining us on our newsmaker line, as he does each
and every week during the legislative session, is the President
of the Utah Senate, Stuart Adams. President Adams, thank you
for joining us. Tell us what you did today.

Speaker 11 (15:47):
Well, we're adding another fourteen hundred dollars to the salaries
of teachers direct We did that three years a couple
of years ago, in twenty twenty three, we had a
six thousand dollars Because sometimes we increase the WPU and
the tea don't see it. So we're going to add
another fourteen hundred dollars to their salary this year. Plus
we're doing a four percent WPU, which means another four

(16:10):
percent increase, And we've done seventy seven million dollars in
professional time giving them time to be able to prepare
for the classrooms. Teachers have been very well handled this year.
We want to make sure they know how much we
care for them.

Speaker 3 (16:25):
President discussion about this coming year. There's talk about the
potential referendum with the collective bargaining bill that bans public
entities from collective bargaining or doing that is the prospect
of a perspect of a referendum contingent on the teacher

(16:46):
raise it all. Are they tethered together somehow?

Speaker 11 (16:50):
Heavens no, We've been doing this for years. If you
look back at the history, greg in twenty twenty four,
to think of this just not in twenty twenty four,
four years ago. In twenty twenty our teacher salaries were
forty four thousand dollars. That was a starting teacher salaries

(17:12):
in twenty twenty and twenty twenty four they're sixty thousand,
and with this increase they'll be between sixty and sixty
five thousand. That's a fifty percent increase in starting teacher
salaries in that five year period of time. We've been
doing this year in year out for the last five years.
Has you know we support our teachers. We've always supported

(17:33):
our teachers and starting to teach your salaries. I think
we're in the top ten in the entire nation in
starting teacher salary. It's been an effort for a number.

Speaker 1 (17:43):
Of years, President Adams. Where is the money coming from?
Where are you going to get the money to pay
for this? How will it work?

Speaker 5 (17:49):
Well?

Speaker 11 (17:50):
Our budget and our revenue actually increased three and a
half percent. When you look back at the last year,
we Utah has the fastest growing GDP of any state
of the nation. We still have money coming in, so
we're going to again. If you have a strong economy,
what can you do. You can pay teachers and you
can cut taxes. And we're going to do both again
this year. We've done it again, again, again and again

(18:10):
and again. For the last five years, we paid teachers,
We've cut taxes, We've paid teachers, we've cut taxes, and
you know, this year we're actually concerned about their support professionals.
We're going to give them a thousand dollars bonus. Those
people that help our teachers and our schools, we would
and that'll take another fifty million dollars. So we're trying
to take care of as many people as we can

(18:32):
and take care of our kids.

Speaker 3 (18:33):
You know, I don't know that our listeners realize, but
this year, this legislative session, I know that your sub
appropriation committees were instructed to find money that you would
cut from programs that you think are less critical or
not as high of a prioritization to fund programs or
new funding for things that they would see as having
a greater prioritization. And your some appropriation committees did a

(18:56):
phenomenal job identifying I think one hundred billion dollars of
money they could reallocate for for better use.

Speaker 2 (19:04):
Let's talk about go ahead.

Speaker 11 (19:07):
Yeah, the federal government trying to copy us right now,
not trying to find cuts. They're trying to they say
we're doing in Utah, that's a hundred million dollars in
our base budget that we saved We take that money
and we use it for two things, tax cuts and
to take care of the needs of the state. And
that's one of the reasons, not only because we have

(19:27):
a strong economy, but because we manage our fairs so
well and we keep looking for things that aren't working
and taking that money and spending it elsewhere.

Speaker 3 (19:36):
I've been starting at dog too long. I said one
hundred billion. Oh, it's one hundred million. We're a state
we don't have We have only twenty four.

Speaker 12 (19:41):
One hundred millions.

Speaker 2 (19:42):
But what are a million big money?

Speaker 11 (19:44):
We already have that in Utah.

Speaker 2 (19:45):
Okay, that's right, that's right.

Speaker 1 (19:49):
President. You've got a week to go. Clock is ticking. Now,
what are some of your priorities as you head into
the final five days.

Speaker 11 (19:56):
Well, we're trying to balance the budget and that we're
going to do that. When I look back on UH,
I want to maybe talk for another second about teachers
as I think about are the things our teachers do.
We have large classroom sizes in Utah because we have
one of the fastest growing population's high birth rate, so
our teachers have large classroom sizes. But think of what

(20:17):
they do with those large classroom sizes. Where the second
in the entire nation. In education, we're the first with
our tc atc ACT scores or the fourth in reading
scores for eighth graders. We're third in mass scores for
eighth graders, and we're number three overall for child were
well being. Our teachers have large classroom sizes, but they're

(20:38):
knocking it out of the ballpark. They're rock stars. We
are we are, we are doing our best with education.
I hope they feel of our support. And the last
part of the session, we're going to work hard. We
got a week left, but there's still lots to do.

Speaker 3 (20:52):
President, finally coming down to the last week, you're landing
this plane, talk about you've talked about the races for teachers.
You're talking about the great scores and all the good
progress made. We do know that you put a you
have school choice, We have a scholarship program, a you
tough fits all scholarship program. There's a bill this year.
Some call it a cleanup. Some people say it's refining

(21:14):
a scholarship and school choice in a way that makes
it stronger. Maybe share with our listeners what's on the
horizon for school choice in Utah and the Utah fits
all scholarship.

Speaker 11 (21:26):
Yeah, we're going to actually put another twenty to forty
million dollars in that program to allow parents to have choice.
We're reducing the amount for homeschoolers. We're dependent if you're
in a grade school K through six or you'll probably
receive four thousand dollars instead of eight, and if you're
in the upper grade six through twelve, you get six thousand.

(21:47):
For home schoolers, we're trying to make the money go further.
We're trying to refine the pro program, but it's been
wildly successful. There's a backlog and a waiting list for
people that want to be on it, and we're going
to continue to fund that all.

Speaker 1 (22:00):
President Stewart Adams, thank you President Adams for joining us
on our news maker line. President Course of the Utah
Senate talking about the big announcement today by the governor
and legislative leaders Mike Choles and Stewart Adams about a
pay raids for teachers fourteen hundred dollars pay rates. This
isn't a bonus, it is a pay raise that's right
ongoing now. The bonus goes to the support staff. Support

(22:22):
staff get one thousand dollars, but this's a pay raise for.

Speaker 3 (22:25):
And did you hear the pay that's been increased for
teachers for our educators over time. We're looking what he say,
fifty percent over the last five years.

Speaker 2 (22:33):
That's good.

Speaker 3 (22:34):
I think that we have large class sizes and we
have you know, our teachers do a good job. I
think it's at the same time, we have a great
school choice opportunity with our Utah Fits All scholarship, the
opportunity for homeschooling, micro schools, private schools. I think that
the landscape of educating our kids in Utah is just
getting brighter on all fronts.

Speaker 13 (22:54):
Hope.

Speaker 1 (22:54):
So all right, more coming up on the Rod and
Greg show here on Utah's Talk radio one oh five
nine can arrest. Part of the conversation is we talk
about the pay raise that the governor lawmakers announced today
to boost teachers salary. Every teacher would get a fourteen
hundred dollars raise, the port staff would get a one
thousand dollars bonus. Eight eight eight five seven eight zero
one zero eight eight eight five seven o eight zero

(23:16):
one zero. If you want to weigh in on this
story today and one of the top stories out there today,
let's go to Judy here in Salt Lake City. Judy,
how are you welcome to the show?

Speaker 13 (23:24):
Hi?

Speaker 10 (23:25):
So I've heard you talk about the teachers making too
much money many times, and I have called in and
said that my daughter, who is a special needs teacher,
who does not make sixty thousand years even now. So
I'm just wanting to know, is that sixty thousand for
all the teachers or is that sixty thousand for the

(23:45):
new teachers.

Speaker 3 (23:47):
It's not as it's an average, now, isn't it. Yeah,
I think it's an average, Judy. I think there are
teachers that make higher than that, and maybe the starting
pay is lower than that, but I think that's the
average that they're.

Speaker 2 (23:58):
Supposed to make.

Speaker 3 (23:59):
And you know, I I do agree that that if
you go to different districts, the way that there is,
the way the pupil unit that the state legislature appropriates
is an amount that's the same, But districts negotiate different
compensation for their teachers. And so I have wondered often why,
like you've described, it's been, there's been, it's been so disparate,

(24:19):
and especially special ed.

Speaker 1 (24:21):
Yeah, all right, back to the phones we go. Last
talk with Phil in Garland tonight on The Roden Grag Show. Hi, Phil,
how are you hey?

Speaker 13 (24:29):
I'm going to be a rainy cloud just to give
you a I don't want any feelings hurt. So so background.
My mom has been a lifelong teacher. She's eighty seven now,
so you can see how far back.

Speaker 12 (24:45):
Yeah, she goes in education.

Speaker 13 (24:47):
I've been part of community councils for my local middle
school and high school, and I'm I'm a little bit
disappointed in this pay raise. I know we talk about,
you know, Utah is doing great compared to other states
and nationally, but when you look at how we're doing internationally,

(25:09):
were our schools are terrible. And I'd really like to
see that money actually go to programs that bypass the
Department of Education and actually get innovative in our education
approach and yield better results for our kids when compared
to international numbers. Because we can't compete in the world
now and give it one more generation, we're going to

(25:31):
be left behind.

Speaker 4 (25:33):
Phil.

Speaker 1 (25:33):
Are you asking for more money for teachers or just
more money education in education for various programs.

Speaker 13 (25:40):
So I'm saying, let's quit throwing money at the problem
and let's rethink the way that we approach education. Let's
dump some money into some alternative approaches to education. Let's
see if we can actually fix the problem instead of
just doubling down on what's not working.

Speaker 1 (26:00):
Yeah, okay, I see where you're going Phill on this.
You know, I'm with Phil a little bit in a way.
We've been doing education the same way for how long, Greg,
and certainly times have changed, technology has changed. Maybe we
just need to re look at the whole system. I'm
not sure on that, but I think I think it's
something to think about.

Speaker 3 (26:17):
I will say I think we are I think the
Utah Fits All scholarship is a school choice scholarship.

Speaker 2 (26:22):
From home school, it's going to private school.

Speaker 3 (26:25):
Even micro schools can be accommodated with this new scholarship.
There's a waiting list that the legislature announced that they're
going to fund more of that waiting list. They have
seventeen thousand students and more that we'll be able to
be funded that way. So I think that the mark
that what Phil says, there's a free market for good
education in terms of demand, where will that demand go?
And I think that it should go to the best
ideas in the best system.

Speaker 1 (26:46):
I agree, I agree, I agree with you on that.
All right, we want to talk about the subject. Unthank
Rod and Greg gets friting in the five o'clock hours,
so call it in. Hang on, we'll get to you
after our news updates. Welcome up the phone too. A
lot to talk about with you today, Stay with us
in hour number two. A lot to talk about today.

(27:10):
We've got the blow up in the Oval office. Learning
more about this. I'm hot about that. You know that
the administration thought they had a deal and then apparently
Zelensky wasn't happy with it, and that's what prompted the
blow up. Today. The big story here in Utah teachers
are going to be getting a fourteen hundred dollars raise,
support staff one thousand dollars. A lot of things. We
can talk to you about that as well, but we've

(27:32):
had a very patient caller holding on the line because
she wants to weigh in on this.

Speaker 3 (27:35):
Greg, let's go to Michelle in South Jordan. Michelle, thank
you for holding and welcome to the Rod and Greg show.

Speaker 14 (27:43):
Well, thanks for taking my call. I am frankly angry
about this raise going to teachers. I know stud Adams said, Hey,
they're over the last five years, they've gotten basically a
twenty thousand dollars increase from twenty twenty to twenty twenty five.

Speaker 4 (28:04):
Like it's enough.

Speaker 14 (28:07):
I'm a small business owner. I work in healthcare, and
I'm struggling to decide whether I can give my employees
a twenty five cent raise, let alone. Here, here's just
a thousand dollars bonus for you, your para professionals that help
in the classroom. I mean, I just I'm tired. I'm
tired of the teachers whining about how hard they have it.

(28:31):
They get every weekend off, they get every holiday, they
get a couple of months in the summer. They're working
two thirds of the year, where my employees and I
we're working every day of the week just to kind
of get by. I can't just give them a fourteen
hundred dollars increase because I think they deserve it, because
they're working so hard. And what about every other public

(28:53):
employee out there, they're working hard too, But it's it's teachers, teachers, teachers.
They have to get more and more and more, and
how much are they doing for us?

Speaker 4 (29:02):
You know?

Speaker 14 (29:03):
I don't know. And I'm also really really mad at
the media is saying this is what Governor Cox has
done for our teachers. Today toast teachers should be saying
to every single taxpayer out there, thank you for that raise,
not Governor Cox alone getting that credit.

Speaker 1 (29:19):
Wow, very good comments. Michelle. You said you ran into this.
You run into this quite often when you were on
the campaign trail. Town right as a public center.

Speaker 3 (29:28):
I would hold I would hold town hall meetings and
we would have I'd have constituents it would speak up
and say, look, my member of our family, a head
of homeworks at the Department of Corrections, we don't see
these kind of races. We have state employees that don't
see the kind of races that our teachers do. And
by the way, Michelle brings up a great point, it's
one hundred and eighty days that they work in the year,
which is great. I'm not disparaging it, but but you

(29:50):
see those increases. And the question that would be posed
to me as as a house member was what about
the rest of us? What about those of us that
work for the state of Utah that don't see the
same pace or percentage of a raise every year. And
so I look, I took inventory of that and when
I served, we did work to try and see state
employees pay raise as well. And I would remind teachers

(30:12):
that would come particularly angry about that perspective of others
that didn't see what they did. But I'll tell you this,
I do think the State of Utah has to be
really careful, because it is.

Speaker 2 (30:21):
I've seen multiple examples.

Speaker 3 (30:23):
Now I know someone with a small business just kind
of the way Michelle just described it, who if they
were interested in hiring someone who worked for the State
of Utah can't even begin to compensate in the free
market as much as they are making working for the state. Wow,
which that working for this for government never used to

(30:43):
be a pay scale that the free market couldn't touch
or afford.

Speaker 2 (30:47):
And that's where we're starting to creep into.

Speaker 1 (30:49):
All right, let's get to more of your calls. Brian
is in Bluffdale tonight here on the rod In Greg Show. Brian,
how are you? Thanks so much for joining us?

Speaker 15 (30:57):
Gentlemen, I have no proble them and all say there's
more money. I've been underpaid for years or decades.

Speaker 4 (31:06):
But my question is if.

Speaker 15 (31:11):
I caught the tail end of the president of somebody
you were talking to and he went into the Yeah,
I went into the money aspect, and where's the money
coming from. We all know where the money is coming from.
The money's coming from us in property taxes.

Speaker 4 (31:28):
Is am I wrong? There?

Speaker 5 (31:30):
No?

Speaker 3 (31:30):
It Well, it's it actually so the income tax, our
state income tax is dedicated to the to the paying
teachers and the in class expense. Your property tax pays
for the buildings, the school buildings, and the maintenance and
operation of those buildings.

Speaker 2 (31:44):
That's the that's what property goes for.

Speaker 15 (31:46):
Yes, okay, well thank you for clarifying that, because I'd
like to know why I'm paying for a big amphitheater
at Alpha at at Alta High School and the taj
Mahal we built in Canyons.

Speaker 2 (32:01):
Yeah there in lies. Yeah, good question.

Speaker 1 (32:04):
You're right. I'm with you on that, Brian. And I
look at that forty or seventy million dollars high school
they built in Farmington and I go, wait a minute, folks,
isn't there a better way to look at this?

Speaker 3 (32:13):
And what's interesting is when people from out of state
arrive in Utah and they see these high schools and
they see these big skits which are paid by proper
texts they go, Wow, you have so much money in education,
You guys must you must fund the most of any
state because Disney would film their their TV shows for
kids in our schools here. Because they have these architectural
natural light coming in the The buildings are very grandiose

(32:34):
compared to school public school buildings and other states. So
it is a bit of an irony that the buildings
paid by property tax are so you know, they are
beautiful buildings, maybe more better, nicer than some other states,
but that isn't what pays the teacher salary. You're in
classroom expense. That's that's your your state proper come tax.

Speaker 1 (32:52):
Your income tax, so your income tax pays the teachers.
Your property taxes pay for the building.

Speaker 4 (32:58):
Yep.

Speaker 2 (32:58):
And they're in lies the disparity.

Speaker 1 (33:00):
It sure does, all right, more of your calls coming up.
It is the Rod and Greg show, big announcement by
the governor and legislative leaders today. Teachers are getting a
fourteen hundred dollars pay raise. That's not a one time
bonus that adds to their base income. And support staff
will get one thousand dollars. What say you about this deal?
Someone pointed this out and I think it was Michelle,

(33:21):
small business owner a moment ago. She asked a great question,
and you and I talked about this during the break.
Why is it always the teachers?

Speaker 2 (33:29):
Yeah?

Speaker 1 (33:30):
Why in this state are we so concerned about the
teachers which provide a valuable service to our communities? But
why don't we talk about the policeman, the fireman, you know,
everybody out there who is supporting government. Why don't we
ever talk about them?

Speaker 4 (33:44):
Greg?

Speaker 2 (33:45):
Yeah?

Speaker 3 (33:46):
And different sources too. I mean, you have cities that
pay for their police and fire. Do you have different,
different sources that do it. I will just tell you this.
I never felt like I always felt like I represented teachers,
good teachers. I never was a union boss representative. I
never represented unions very well. It really wasn't my gig.
I didn't like doing it. And the unions, I believe,

(34:07):
have so politicized education funding and they and that that
that the politics of that have outpaced the clamor for
or the the you know the fairness of other state
employees or how much they're making every year. There's it's
highly highly political when we get into that education realm.

Speaker 1 (34:25):
Believe me, it sure is. All right, Let's get back
to your calls. Let's see, let's go to Stacey here
in Salt Lake City, Stafie, Stacey, how are you? Thanks
for joining us?

Speaker 16 (34:34):
Hi, thank you. I totally agree. It's the unions and
the teachers that I think they're trying to appease in
a little bit, a little way because they recently upped
the number of this scholarship that is for school choice, homeschoolers,

(35:00):
et cetera. And I think it's just a way and
I agree with that. I agree with all the school choice.
That's the way it should be. We need competition. It's
a way to increase the goodness of what's already going
on in education. But I see it as when I

(35:21):
heard about this, I'm like, oh, maybe it's a way
to kind of stay to the teachers and the unions.

Speaker 14 (35:28):
Here you go, we appreciate you.

Speaker 3 (35:31):
Oh yeah, Okay, No, I think I think you're tracking
out accurately, Stacy.

Speaker 9 (35:36):
I do.

Speaker 3 (35:37):
I think You're right there. There is they want. It's
been the approach to the legislature of the last few
years to not fall into a narrative of we we
we don't like our public schools and we're going to
only go to school choice and we're only going to
empower parents and children. There is a public school system,
and they do look to do both. They do want

(35:57):
to have empower and expand parental choice education and different options,
but they also want to send a clear message that
they believe in our public school K through twelve systems.

Speaker 2 (36:07):
So I think they do.

Speaker 3 (36:08):
I think they try to try, you know, thread that needle,
but it comes with a lot of frustration, as we're
hearing from callers as well.

Speaker 1 (36:14):
All right, more your calls coming up. It is the
Rod and Greg Show. We're talking about the top stories
of the day, including the announcement today by the governor
and legislative leaders to give all teachers in the state
of fourteen hundred dollars pay raise and a one thousand
dollars bonus for support staff in education. Your calls and
comments coming up. Eighty eighty eight five seven eight zero
one zero eight eight eight five seven eight zero one zero.

(36:36):
And if you want to follow us right now, all
you do is have to go to X and you know,
search for at Rotting Greg Show. And right now we
have a poll up on the website or on the
X page if you'd like to weigh in on this.
We're talking about the teacher pay big announcement today by
the Legislative and Governor's office leaders Governor's Office about a

(36:56):
fourteen hundred dollars pay raise, not a bonus, but a
pay raise for teachers and a one thousand dollars bonus
for support staff. And we're getting your reaction to it.
Let's go to the phones. Let's check in with cricket
in Sandy tonight. Cricket, how are you welcome to the
Roden Great Show?

Speaker 12 (37:12):
Oh?

Speaker 9 (37:12):
Thank you.

Speaker 17 (37:13):
I'm doing great tonight. And this is a subject matter
that's near and dear to my heart. I've got lots
of friends that are teachers who I admire and I
know work hard, and I know there's a lot of
teachers out there. But I got some questions. First, I
want to know where does Utah rank K through twelve
and reading, math, writing, and science compared to the other

(37:33):
fifty states. I know it's been out there, but I
have forgotten. Number Two, pay raises do not equal student
being students being educated. Number Three, how do the teachers
students' achievements compare with pay? When I've been here in

(37:55):
this state, I moved from another state about forty years ago,
and at that time our teachers were woefully, woefully underpaid
and huge classrooms. But I would like to know how
do the teachers student achievements compare with their new found
job payment. And I believe this is a little bit

(38:21):
off the pay issue, but I believe right now we
are not where we should be with the children's education.
If they can't read and give change for a dollar,
and I don't care if it's on a computers, they can't.
If they can't do that, they're not educated. So what
I would like to know is if they're not educated,

(38:44):
the people who are educating them may be a little
deficient in some manners. So I would like to see
our teachers K through twelve be given general.

Speaker 2 (38:56):
Intelligence tests right now.

Speaker 17 (39:00):
Their educated status. Now, I am not inferring that teachers
are dumb, but what I'd like to know is where
is their abilities today with the kids that can't give
change for a dollar and can't write a sentence and
can't recurse it right now?

Speaker 1 (39:19):
Good points, good points, those are.

Speaker 17 (39:20):
The things that I'm concerned about.

Speaker 18 (39:22):
You know what.

Speaker 19 (39:23):
They yes where we.

Speaker 17 (39:24):
Are is the fifty States.

Speaker 1 (39:27):
Greg has looked that up.

Speaker 3 (39:29):
So here here's the challenge, okay, because every state may
have its own standards, and sometimes I had I once
had it a superintendent tell me, if you want to
back base student success on a graduation rate, I know
how to do really well. We'll just graduate every kid.
And so we have to be very careful about state standards.
So there has to be maybe a uniform way to
look at it. So what I try to do is

(39:49):
I went to and this is this data is a
year old cricket January tenth of twenty four. Where do
Utah students rank on taking college SAT and ACT scores all?
Also where do they rank in the eighth grade math
and English assessments? Okay, because there's some standardized tests that
all students are taking without regard to where they live.

(40:10):
So I looked at that rank and I think you'd
be surprised to know that we Massachusetts ranks number one.
Utah actually ranks number two. But I will tell you this,
So out of fifty states, we're number two on a
SAT and ACT and we test about eighty nine I
think it's eighty nine percent of the students that graduate.
We'll take that test, which is a high percentage of

(40:30):
students in our public schools, by the way. But here's
what's interesting. Our demographics in Utah. If you think of
some of the other states, we don't have a Chicago
like student population or a Baltimore type we have. Our
percentage of two parent homes is so much higher than
other homes too, So we get very good academic outcomes

(40:52):
by as a state on a lot of these measurements.
But we also have some advantages demographically that way too.
But your point, I think is well taken, and that
is Man, these kids have to be able to make change.

Speaker 2 (41:04):
We have to.

Speaker 3 (41:05):
This is an emerging workforce and they have to be
prepared for it. And I think a lot of times
what we're seeing in our schools. I think it's why
parental choices become so popular with parents who might not
have done it themselves before but are looking at it now,
is we're not exactly comfortable with this curriculum, or we're
not sure that this curriculum is providing or preparing these
students for it to become future workforce. So great questions, cricket,

(41:29):
and that's and I think testing the teachers would be fun.

Speaker 1 (41:33):
Yeah, it would be Let's go to Ryan and pledge
in view tonight, Ryan, how are you welcome to the
Rod and Greg Show.

Speaker 12 (41:40):
Hi.

Speaker 20 (41:40):
I'll just have a different opinion of a previous caller.
So I know multiple teachers up in Utah and Wyoming,
and I know for certain Utah that there's difference in
Ogden has a lot of elven English seculent language.

Speaker 11 (41:57):
Ye.

Speaker 1 (41:58):
Yes, schools, Yes.

Speaker 20 (41:59):
That's in to throw the test scores down. Yes, a
parent pleasant view majority of the schools up here. Over,
I'll try to say sixty percent of the students in
the schools my kids go to that are above the benchmark,
They're well above their grade level. And so I think
a lot of it is the demographic of the the

(42:23):
children's parents and what they value, and if the parents
have time to do that, and if the parents actually
understand some of the maths the kids are learning.

Speaker 4 (42:30):
Now.

Speaker 20 (42:30):
I know my fourth grader, she's learning maths that I
learned in sixth grade, right, Yeah, and that's going about.

Speaker 4 (42:35):
Thirty years ago.

Speaker 20 (42:36):
So I think there's a little bit more than just
insulting teachers and all that stuff. To take a bigger
look at it, and how much effort do parents take
nowadays with a lot of multi both parents working to
take the time to sit down with their child and
make sure they actually understand it.

Speaker 1 (42:52):
Yeah, you make some very good points on that.

Speaker 3 (42:54):
There's a couple of points that their mind brings up
that I just want to touch on.

Speaker 1 (42:58):
One.

Speaker 3 (42:58):
English is the second language where we have known regions
in Utah, say Ogden as a typically.

Speaker 2 (43:04):
HIGHL student population.

Speaker 3 (43:07):
Because of this border crisis we have, we have EESL
through the roof in Harriman and Sandy and areas where
NGOs have come in, and we've had refugee populations with
so many different languages, not even a common language but Ryan.
One of the things I want to point out is
where you have some of those challenges. Proficiency is one
way to gauge at student progress. But the other way,

(43:27):
especially on ESL students that our schools look at is
year over year progress. So it might not be that
you're getting a's or b's, but if you were failing
and you weren't at grade level at all, but now
you're year over year, you're seeing a progress and they're
getting better. There's ways to measure that as well, so
that the demographic of student that you're teaching or the
challenges can be measured. A little bit better than just

(43:48):
raw proficiency by itself.

Speaker 1 (43:50):
Well, I'm with you on this, Greg. I think year
over year performance of each school should be measured, right.
I hate the idea of comparing this school to that school.
They are apple and oranges. Yet in America today we
want to compare all schools the same. They're different, Greg,
you know, they like you point out demographic where they're located.

(44:10):
You know, there's so many factors, so comparing schools to
me doesn't make any sense. I like your idea, how
did they do last year and how are they doing
this year?

Speaker 3 (44:20):
That gets a little sticky because if you're if you're
in a draper soft area where all the kids are
getting a's, where do you go from A from last
year to A this year? Your proficiency might be very high,
but you're not going to see a big year of
year progress because you're you're already crushing it, right. But
then you have areas where kids might be struggling to
even read at grade level, and if you see a
year over year progress there, if they were a D student,

(44:42):
that's better than the F and failing student they were
before they move one letter grade. If they move to
a C minus proficiency wise, that's not setting the world
on fire, but on year over year progress, that's huge.
You see different measurements from different communities. So I do
think you have to have a blend. And to your point,
you can't take schools and just them next to each
other and say are they performing the same?

Speaker 2 (45:02):
Yeah?

Speaker 1 (45:02):
All right, We've got a lot of people want to
weigh in on this. Eight eight eight five seven O
eight zero one zero eight eight eight five seven o
eight zero one zero is reg and I and you
talk about the proposed or the teacher raises that are
coming teacher's way here in the state of Utah. More
coming up on the Rotten Greg Show.

Speaker 2 (45:18):
So it's a very complicated issue.

Speaker 1 (45:20):
Sure is all right?

Speaker 2 (45:21):
Our listeners know the answers. Let's go to them.

Speaker 1 (45:23):
Okay, let's talk to Al in Sandy tonight here on
the Rod and Gregg Show. Al, how are you? Thanks
for joining us.

Speaker 18 (45:31):
I'm well, thanks for taking my call, and I'm very
passionate about this subject. I'm a teacher, been teaching my
full adult life. I'm a specialty teacher and I so
I'll just try to share as much as I can,
as quickly as i can. Okay, One of the things
that I've noticed is that most teachers are not actually

(45:52):
specialists in the things that they teach, So I think
that's a problem. The salary is not enough, I think
to actually have a home. The median income I believe
in Utah for the average household is almost one hundred
thousand dollars, so sixty thousand is pretty low. I have
to work basically all the time to even attempt to

(46:16):
get a home one day. I'm thirty years old, by
the way, and I think that in the United States
we value things much more than education. I think we
value sports more, and that I think is clearly shown
when in most states the highest public paid figure is

(46:39):
a football coach and they make actually millions of dollars.
So I think in many ways the system is pretty broken,
and there are lots of ways that we can improve
upon it.

Speaker 1 (46:48):
Now, let me let me ask you a couple of
questions or point out one thing. The medium income in
this state is not one hundred thousand dollars. I think
it's closer to fifty four or sixty four somewhere in there.
So your figure is a little high there. I want
to ask you, al what is the number that teachers
in this state want you you have a number? What

(47:09):
you know, they always talk about pack classrooms and workload,
but what is the number that will make them happy?
I've never heard anybody say that.

Speaker 18 (47:20):
Well, I think what would make somebody happy? I think
in any of these sort of like normal jobs like
police officers, firefighters, teachers, postal workers, is just something that's
going to help us to be able to get to
have a home.

Speaker 1 (47:33):
Okay, So that.

Speaker 18 (47:35):
That seems really challenging. So I think it depends per state. Obviously.
You know, the way that it would be in Mississippi
would be very different than how it is in Utah
or New York, San Francisco.

Speaker 1 (47:44):
And New York. And prices are in Utah are pretty
pretty high right now. I get that.

Speaker 2 (47:50):
So homeowners yet I hear you.

Speaker 18 (47:53):
Yeah, I mean we I don't want to work, you
know all the time, you know what to just be
able to have a home. You know, I used to
live in Sandy and rent, what you know, for just
a decent two bedroom apartment was twenty four twenty five
hundred dollars a month. And if you're trying to follow
basic rent practice, which you know you need to have
thirty percent of your income basically go to rent, not

(48:15):
more than that, you know, So we're looking at a
lot of money there. All right, al, all right, we
give the gist of what you're saying, Greg.

Speaker 3 (48:22):
Yeah, and and look, our cost of living is just
skyrocketing and you tie.

Speaker 1 (48:26):
And who are here too?

Speaker 11 (48:27):
Right?

Speaker 2 (48:28):
Prices are so I hear what I was saying.

Speaker 3 (48:30):
Some of that, you know, Yeah, I don't think that
we'll ever see education or teachers paid as sports people,
even in institutions of higher learning, because they get these big,
you know, conference contracts, and there's just there's there's a
money stream that attaches to successful athletic programs within your universities.
And I worry actually about sports in college. I think

(48:52):
it's with these new deals that that get I think it.
I think it's a it's it's not healthy, what's happening.

Speaker 1 (48:59):
Can I make a point on that, Greg, I had
a son who is an athletic director and a head
football coach. Yes, he did make a lot of money,
right what he got paid for doing that.

Speaker 3 (49:10):
That was not a lot of money, hardly any No
that you're right, you're right, and so there is that disparity.
I I look This is where this issue does get difficult,
because you have that issue where you need to I
don't think it's unreasonable to want to have a job
where you can afford a home in the in the area,
in the county in which you work. I think I

(49:31):
think that's absolutely appropriate.

Speaker 1 (49:33):
So are you saying we should guarantee everybody at home.

Speaker 3 (49:36):
No, I just think that. I just think that it's
the challenge that we face. I hear the challenge, but
if you can't have I don't think it's healthy to
have government jobs that outpace the private sector. Usually it
was I make a little less, but I get great
benefits with the state. For educators, it was the hope
was at least that because you don't work this summer,

(49:57):
because we have this agrarian society still where we still
have daylight savings, that we that they have one hundred
and eighty day work week instead of the I can't
remember what it is. It's not three sixty five because
we get days off. I think it's two hundred and
twenty seven or something. I don't like this, but anyway,
it's less. It's it's less work days. But there was
supposed to be a reward for that in quality of life.

(50:18):
But anyway, it is tougher and and it's it's it's
easy to articulate the issues, it's harder to land on
the solutions. I think what you're hearing from President Adams
about these these raises is I've seen where teachers unions
have opposed direct raises to teachers and committees that I've shared.
They've opposed it because they want to be the one
to give more money to those that have been there

(50:39):
longer and a lot less money to those that just
get there. But I've talked. I spoke to teachers I
used to represent, and they said, I'm happy for a raise.

Speaker 2 (50:46):
I'm and so anyway.

Speaker 1 (50:49):
All right's let's take a break, then we'll come back
with more phone calls here on the run in great show.

Speaker 3 (50:53):
Hey, let's continue with our calls. We're having great calls,
conversation about our budget, our role of our teachers. Let's
go back to the phones and let's go to Diane
who's been patiently waiting from Tuila.

Speaker 2 (51:04):
Diane, thank you for holding. Welcome to the Rod and
Gregg Show.

Speaker 19 (51:08):
Hi, Okay, I'm calling because of the woman who said
that the kids can't make change. This has been bothering
me for decades. There is no reason to blame the
teachers when they are not given the tools they need.
There is a man named Zigfield Engelman. I don't know
if he's still alive, but he developed the system. Back

(51:31):
in the late sixties early seventies, there was a nationwide
study where people were allowed to submit any kind of
education program. His program was the only one that got
top scores across all subjects. So it's out there. You
can look him up online. You can see videos. He's

(51:51):
got books. I worked with this system. It gives kids
the tools they need. It only is needed through the
fourth grade. By the fourth grade, the student has the
tools they need to have comprehension to be good in
all subjects, to be able to educate themselves. You know,

(52:14):
if a child cannot read and understand what they're reading,
they're limited to what a teacher can get through verbally.
This is doing the teachers and the children at diskservice
teachers are teaching our future. We need that now. Why
don't we have this because on March was it March fifteenth,

(52:37):
fourteen fifteenth of two thousand and one. I cut it out.
I'm looking at it.

Speaker 12 (52:40):
Walter E.

Speaker 19 (52:41):
Williams had a syndicated column and he said, in this column,
pretend you're a politician or high level bureaucrat seeking low
accountability standards as well as more power and control over
American lives. Which would you prefer ignorant and uninformed constituents
or ones who are educated and informed?

Speaker 1 (52:58):
We want to the educated informed you want?

Speaker 3 (53:00):
And I love Williams. Yeah, good, good columnists. Let's go
to John, thank you for the call.

Speaker 4 (53:05):
Go.

Speaker 3 (53:05):
Let's go to John and Midvelle. John, thank you for holding.
Welcome to the Rod and Greg show what say you?

Speaker 4 (53:11):
Hey?

Speaker 21 (53:11):
Rod and Greg? So I am the son of a
teacher woman and learned growing up that yeah, salary wasn't
that good. But as I matured and went to school
and got a career, it was easy to see these
are the same choices that college students have to make.
If I'm an art history major and want to make

(53:32):
one hundred thousand dollars, I picked per year. I picked
the wrong major. If I want to be a teacher
and want to earn a big salary, I picked the
wrong career. So that's the economic reality. And there are
some very dedicated teachers I'll say my mom was one
of them who put in way more hours than several

(53:52):
of my public school teachers did, but it didn't matter.
She started with that low salary and by the end
of her career, with this second master's degree, she started
maxing out some of the bands for teacher salaries. But
she had to do all that on her own. Yeah,
so I think the career choices people make the system
we live in. Just choose better and don't complain.

Speaker 1 (54:15):
All right, John, thank you for that. You're right. It
is a career choice, Greg, and people want to they
want to teach, but I think going in you have
to realize probably aren't going to make a whole lot
of money to start with. It takes a while, but
like it does in every profession in broadcasting, it takes
a while.

Speaker 3 (54:33):
And there were no I don't I think times change
and I was this, you know, I've been almost I
think am eight years out of public service, so I
can't say that the time I was working on these
issues are the times we live in now.

Speaker 1 (54:44):
Yeah, thinks it was.

Speaker 3 (54:45):
There was a high turnover of teachers that were teaching,
you know, that were certified teachers and employed in the
first five years. The turnover was incredibly high. One of
the fact one of the strongest factors there was they
were supporting us spouse going through school. It was not
a career that was going to raise a family. It
was a career that helped supplement a family as as
a young marriage began and as there as they went

(55:08):
along and you saw people and then the the way
a system works is some of the hardest environments you
get are handed to the brand new teacher, not the classrooms.

Speaker 1 (55:17):
Yeah, the classrooms they're very, very tough as well. All right,
we've got a lot more to give to our number
three's on this way. Thanks for being with us on
this Friday, Stay with us on talk radio one oh
five nine an RS. All right, Everyboddy, welcome back our

(55:39):
number three of the Rod and Greg Show with you
on Utah's Talk Radio one oh five nine kN R S.
Hope you're having a great Friday. I'm Rod Arquet, I'm
citizen in Hughes. All right, let's continue now we've got
another great hour. We'll be talking to you about We'll
talk about school board subject to referendums. Is that a possibility?
How about under Donald Trump? Could Carbony missions. Actually fall

(55:59):
will take a look at that, and in our Listen
Back Friday segments we'll talk about fluoride in the drinking
water and the old Republican traits are not working on
Donald Trump this time. So we've got a great show
to get to you today. All right, Greg, school boards,
and I've said this before, I think school board city
councils are two of the most important races political races

(56:20):
that voters should vote on because I think they have
a direct impact on our everyday lives.

Speaker 3 (56:24):
I agree, but it's not as close to the people
as you would think. If it's if there isn't a
level of transparency and a level of accountability that you
find in other elected bodies.

Speaker 2 (56:35):
And so there's a bit of.

Speaker 3 (56:36):
A debate about that specific topic that has emerged in
our legislature this year.

Speaker 1 (56:41):
Yeah, they've As a matter of fact, there is a
bill moving through the legislature right now that would basically
say that school board decisions could become subject to voter referendums.
Behind that bill is our next guest date, Representative Rectship.
Representative Ship, thanks for joining us tonight. What's behind your bill, sir?

Speaker 4 (56:58):
Well? What it does? School boards are the only legislative
body in our state that is not subject to referendums.
And there's been a lot of issues around school boards
here the last while, and I just think it's good policy.
There was an issue, there's issues going on in our
county frankly, that started about six years ago when the

(57:24):
school board voted on a split vote to remove the
Redmond name as said, the Cedar Redmond are now the
Cedar Reds. Remember that that really upset our community so
bad that there's been since that time, there's been two
bond bonds go to elect school board school bonds and

(57:48):
both of them have failed, and they have been fairly
close votes. And I honestly feel like the people don't
feel like they've been heard on this issue. And I
have heard some people say, well, until they do something
about that and give us a say, we're not going
to vote for anything to help. And so what my
bill does is it says that any issue, including increasing

(58:14):
in taxes or any issues. Of course it doesn't involve
personnel issues. But if they have a split vote and
the people want to weigh in on it, they can
go through the process of you know, gathering the signatures
and getting it on the ballot, but if they get

(58:34):
a supermajority or more, then it's protected from a referendum.
So basically they can protect themselves by making sure that
the policies they pass they have a supermajority. Most school
boards I think around the state, well you have five
and seven and nine school member school boards. So if

(58:54):
you have a seven like we do in our Iron
school district, if you had five yes's and two know's,
you're good. You know, if you go four to three,
then it doesn't mean everything's going to be get referred,
but it at least gives the people an opportunity on
issues that rise to the level of the concern in

(59:15):
the community, that they can at least weigh in. And
I would submit on this particular issue that if the
people would have been able to weigh in, even if
the vote would have gone the other way, to still
keep it, that's a different mascot they would have. They
would have been fine because they had at least had
a chance to weigh in on it. I've know basically

(59:35):
what the bill is.

Speaker 3 (59:37):
I noticed that this bill passed with forty yes votes.
It takes thirty eight votes to pass the bill, So
this build this was a pretty close vote on the
floor of the House. I'm surprised because nationally you've seen
during the Biden administration you had my orcis Alle Hunter
of my orc is describe parents that attend school board

(59:58):
meetings is potential domestic tear. We have a lot of
parents that have been upset with decisions of school boards
are making.

Speaker 2 (01:00:05):
And you make a very valid point that while lawmakers.

Speaker 3 (01:00:07):
And even myself weren't crazy about the referendum process, we
always knew that whatever bills we passed could be subject
to that process. So what was the pushback you heard
where the bill you just described, and kind of the
times we're living in now, you didn't see a super
majority of Republicans just really get on board with this bill.

Speaker 4 (01:00:30):
To be honest with I'm not really sure why we
would have opposition, you know, as we discussed it. Hey,
we're subject to referendums. Every other legislative body is subject
to them. They ought to be as well. And of
course the school people, I think we're reaching out to

(01:00:52):
their representatives probably trying to push against it because they
want to be able to do they want even on
a split vote, and probably ninety percent or better of
those types of votes probably would never be referred. And
certainly we live in a republic. I like a republican

(01:01:13):
form of government. We can't have a straight demos you know,
a pure democracy and have everybody vote on everything. But
sometimes things rise to the level if you don't want
to have to wait till another election to try and
get people in the office that will agree with you
and do what you want to do. So, you know,

(01:01:33):
it's just like I think it's my first or second session,
we passed that reform on taxes, you know, and the
people didn't like it. They did a referendum. It was
they got enough signatures. It was going to go to
the ballot, but we weren't able to do a budget.

(01:01:54):
It couldn't wait for that, so we just ended up
repealing it so it can have an effect effect, you know.

Speaker 1 (01:02:01):
Yeah, yeah, final question for you. I've said four years
on this radio show that I believe the two most
important elections that come around every year every other year
are elections to city council and school board elections. I
think they have more of a direct impact on a
community than any other elective body we have. With that
in mind, would this make the school boards even more

(01:02:23):
responsive to their constituents if there's an issue up there
that they're concerned about.

Speaker 4 (01:02:29):
I think it would, because in fact, I had a
good visit with some of the school board people as
well as a superintendent in my area on it, and
as we discussed it, and you know, initially somewhere we're
quite concerned about it. But in the end they says, well,
you know, that may just make our school boards a
little more careful on what kind of decisions they make.

(01:02:52):
That if they're concerned about a potential referendum on a
you know, a high level issue, they may wait till
they have the to make sure they're protected that way,
or or subject themselves to it.

Speaker 1 (01:03:05):
On our Newsmaker line, state Representative Rexship talking about a
bill in which school boards would be subject to referendums
and as many issues as crop up with local school districts.
The more transparent, more open they are, the more like.

Speaker 10 (01:03:18):
I love it.

Speaker 3 (01:03:18):
What's good for the goose, good for the gander, all
other elected buys. As the representative pointed out, they are
subject to referendum at times, and if you don't want one,
get us super majority, which does give you motivation to
really come together on policy and not just on split votes,
which I think that's a good motivation, is a good
way to problem solve.

Speaker 1 (01:03:38):
Sure is all right? More coming up on the Rod
and Greg Show on this Thank Rod and Greg is
Friday right here on Talk Radio one O five nine
can arrests?

Speaker 2 (01:03:46):
Have truth bombs.

Speaker 3 (01:03:47):
Ever been more enjoyable to see, to hear, to witness?

Speaker 11 (01:03:50):
Now?

Speaker 1 (01:03:51):
I don't think they have, unless you'll listen to this show.
Donald Trump's in the White House. He put Lee Zelden
in charge of the EPA. What is that going to
mean for the environment? For cleaning clean water, that's one
of their priorities, of course, but what about carbon em missions?
You know, Greg, remember during the campaign, the greenies were
out there saying, oh he gets in, we'll have dirty air,
dirty water, the world will just fall apart with Donald Trump.

Speaker 3 (01:04:15):
Well, yeah, I mean remember if Donald Trump walked on water,
the regime media would scream he does not a swim.

Speaker 1 (01:04:22):
Yeah, So everything went that, there's.

Speaker 2 (01:04:23):
Nothing you could say. If his lips were moving, they
said the world was ending.

Speaker 12 (01:04:27):
Yeah.

Speaker 1 (01:04:27):
Well, Joining us on our newsbacker line right now is
Benjamin Derker is executive director the Alliance for Innovation and infrastructure. Benjamin,
thanks for joining us. Let's talk about Donald Trump and
the environment. You right that carbon e missions will actually
fall under Donald Trump. How's that going to happen?

Speaker 22 (01:04:44):
Yeah, I think a lot of it has to do
with separating kind of rhetoric and talking points from what's
actually happening in private industry and what the regulatory focus
actually looks like. So really I laid out kind of
a three point argument, the first being growth doesn't necessarily
mean more emissions. You can look at population growth, you

(01:05:04):
can look at economic growth. We've seen huge growth in
both population numbers and the GDP at the same time
as falling emissions, so that's kind of a background reality
we live in. One of the second points is a
lot of the reasons for falling emissions are things like
switching to natural gas, the fracturing hydro excuse me, the

(01:05:26):
hydraulic fracturing revolution is one of the reasons we have
lower emissions today, and so as Donald Trump wants to
lean more on natural gas, we're actually going to see
lower emissions for a lot of different reasons. And then
really the third point focuses on the regulation and there's
a lot of focus on Elon Musk and Doge and
things like that. And people are fearful that cutting regulation

(01:05:49):
is going to lead the dirtier air and water. But
the thing is people have already made capital intensive investments.
They're not going to scrap those. Those things are in place,
things like carbon capture. And then on the other front,
you know, prescriptive regulation, which is a very favorite tool
of environmentalists, locks in place inefficiency, whereas performance based regulation

(01:06:11):
that describes a goal and lets innovators try new things,
will actually lead to better results. So Donald Trump is
more focused on performance oriented regulations, not just stripping things
down or reducing regulations across the board, but actually smarter
regulation that unlocks innovation and it leads to trying new things,
which in this case does lead to fewer carbon emissions.

Speaker 3 (01:06:32):
I found it out fascinating in your column or your article.
Over over a century of time, the CO two emissions
climb that we've seen in this country peaked in two
thousand and five to two thousand and seven. It's been
decreasing ever since. I don't remember some grand at Green
New Deal around five the idiot, so I think you've
touched on it a little bit. But to those that

(01:06:53):
would say, see, since we've become green and we've had
a green New Deal or whatever we've done, look how
carbon emissions have declined. Specifically beyond maybe using natural gas more,
which I see here in Utah a lot and carbon factoring,
give us some examples of why we're seeing lower emissions
as even our population grows.

Speaker 22 (01:07:14):
Yeah, one of the things is we had a lot
of coal in our energy mix prior to two thousand
and five. And I think you guys and your listeners
will probably agree that there was bad policy that pushed
coal out of the energy mix. Yes, but natural gas
and fracking made natural gas the primary and economically efficient

(01:07:37):
way to produce energy, and it happens to be fifty
percent of the carbon emissions of coal when you combust it.
So it really was natural gas other hydrocarbons that led
to carbon emissions falling. But beyond that, the question about
population growth. We can leverage existing infrastructure to do a
lot more for a lot more people, so we're actually

(01:07:58):
more efficient with what's our been built over time, so
you're not needing to build whole new systems and whole
new types of power to add a little bit of
extra capacity. For that new population, and then obviously over
time we see more innovation, more technology, things get more efficient,
so we can have a population that's thirty million more

(01:08:18):
people than it was, you know, in two thousand and
five and still see lower carbon emissions at a national level.

Speaker 1 (01:08:27):
Benjamin, what are you seeing on the issue of regulation,
because I know you touched down on that a little
bit here a few moments ago. Do you see the
administration really making an effort to reduce regulations or refine
regulations for the energy industry.

Speaker 22 (01:08:42):
I definitely do see that. You know, the new Energy
Secretary is hyper focused on unleashing American energy dominance, and
that means reducing things that are causing investors not to invest.
You know, he recently said infrastructure is the number one
limterter on more energy production, and so you know, in

(01:09:02):
the Biden administration and a lot of past administrations, even
holding things back like pipeline approvals has led to higher
energy costs. So there is a regulatory focus, but there's
also approving projects that have been kind of quote unquote
in the pipeline, which is not regulation in itself, but
it's helping approve things that do need to be built

(01:09:25):
and there is regulatory relief as a component of that,
and then again kind of a focus on performance oriented
policy rather than prescriptive that tells you what and how
to do something. You know, the Trump administration has already
been clearing a path to do that, and we'd love
to see more of it.

Speaker 3 (01:09:43):
You know, they say necessities and other invention with AI
with just different technologies. I think companies and their need
for power is just increasing so much. There's a discussion
in Utah about that, and even nuclear power is a
way to provide even more power. Is power demands increase.
This might sound like a silly observation or example, but
I remember a time when they were when there was

(01:10:04):
a movement to have these these led light bulbs, and
they wanted to give you, they want to give you
these rebates, and they want to give you all this
money to take them. But they were tinny, They flickered on,
they were It was just bad. The second those things
lit like a real light bulb, the second they worked
like a real light bulb but used a fraction of
the power, and you could they would last forever. I

(01:10:26):
was in as a as a consumer, it was an
it's been an absolute no brainer to go to a
very low energy consuming, last forever light bulb that works
really well. The innovation side that you point out in
your article do you do you? Is that the horizon
that you see that we're just smart about how we
use our power, knowing that we have to be. There's

(01:10:46):
a lot of demands on it. And do you see
examples like that but better examples coming our way?

Speaker 22 (01:10:53):
You know, I definitely do. In my professional work, I
worked for the only infrastructure focused think tank in the
United States. It's called the Alliance for Innovation and Infrastructure
or AII, and this is the kind of thing we
study every day, and we really seek to advance innovation
in industry and public policy. And so we're looking for
these types of new innovations, ways to clear out regulatory

(01:11:17):
barriers or hurdles to really just help innovators unlock new potential.
The example that you gave with the LED light bulb
is actually that perfect example of prescriptive and it doesn't
have to be a rule of regulation, but telling the
consumer what they need to do or how to do it,
rather than saying, whoever can produce the best light bulb

(01:11:38):
will win. Yeah, And so that's a performance school. That's
the kind of thing that's a great example to illustrate.
And you know, one example I put in the article
is actually a really neat innovation we've just became aware
of recently around how to produce hydrogen. That's a big
discussion in the energy space for things like powering data
centers and all this new energy demand a lot of

(01:11:59):
environment unless they're looking to hydrogen as a way to
do that without carbon emissions. But the thing is, you
have to produce hydrogen. It's not a naturally occurring commodity
or resource like oil and gas are. But there are
companies that can now strip the carbon out of methane
so that you have just hydrogen and just solid carbon
not CO two, and then they're building that into roadways,

(01:12:21):
so they're actually doing pro infrastructure solutions that also provide energy.
And it's not the kind of let's spend a bunch
of energy to produce a new power resource like you
might have with a green hydrogen solution that takes new
power just to make hydrogen. So that's a really cool
innovation happening. That's a company called Modern Hydrogen, and they're

(01:12:46):
out in the Pacific Northwest. But there's tons of people
doing things like this, things that are unconventional you wouldn't
have thought of ten years ago, and certainly federal regulation
didn't conceive of ten years ago, much less fifty or
one hundred when a lot of these were written. So
we're just trying to push on those things, not to
recreate the whole regulatory code, but to define really good

(01:13:08):
examples where innovation is being suppressed and just change language
to allow it to be unleashed and unlocked. And I
think that's something that Trump administration really will focus on
this this time around.

Speaker 1 (01:13:18):
On our Newsmaker line. That's Benjamin Derker. He is the
executive director of the Alliance for Innovation and Infrastructure. I
think was so unique that he brought up. You mentioned
it as well, Greg, Let innovation challenges this, and they
will come up with ways to save energy and save
the planet. Let innovators do it.

Speaker 3 (01:13:35):
You like my light bulb analogy because he's totally true.
All my elightebulb's relly because they work and they're bright,
and they last forever and they're.

Speaker 2 (01:13:42):
Not expensive and I'm in and you're happy.

Speaker 3 (01:13:44):
Yeah, and if it uses less power, and that's a
value add Rock and Roll Yeah, there we go.

Speaker 1 (01:13:50):
All right, our listen back Friday segments coming your way
next right here on the Rod and Greg Show and
talk righty O one oh five nine k nrs. This
is where we take him in and look back at
some of the news that we've spoken with during the
past week, and we've had some dynamite shows. One of
the issues that a moved through the legislature. It's been
so controversial in the past, but this one kind of

(01:14:10):
slipped through, I guess, Greg, I don't want to say
it slipped through, but it was about flooridated drinking water. Well,
it has passed, to the surprise I think of a
few people out there is such an issue right now
with RFK Junior in charge of food safety that people
are concerned about fluoride in their water.

Speaker 2 (01:14:25):
Yeah, it was a big surprise.

Speaker 3 (01:14:26):
It's usually been a very contentious bill, with a lot
of people from each side arguing for or against mm hmm.
A lot of the medical communities often and for a
long time argued for it. But this bill, it really
got consensus and it took off.

Speaker 2 (01:14:40):
It flew it past it did.

Speaker 1 (01:14:41):
As a matter of fact, we spoke with the sponsor
of the bill, State Representative Stephanie Grish. Issue was on
our Newsmaker line earlier this week. We want to play
that interview back for you because I asked her, first
of all, why did you decide to take on this issue?

Speaker 9 (01:14:54):
Well, last year I actually had a constituent come forward
and asked me to run a bill related to FLOORA
and getting it out of the water systems, and so
I started working with her on that, and then we
had the EPA ruling that came out toward the end
of last year, which then ended up bringing the water
districts into the conversation and it just kind of snowballs

(01:15:15):
from there.

Speaker 3 (01:15:16):
So congratulations. This is a This is not an unknown issue.
It's an issue that's come up and been quite controversial
over the years. I didn't see as much public narrative
about it, but it's a heavy lift. I see its status.
You've got through the House and Senate and it's I
guess it's on its way to the governor to be signed.
Explain to our listeners this prohibition on fluoride in our

(01:15:37):
public water systems?

Speaker 2 (01:15:38):
Is this going forward?

Speaker 3 (01:15:39):
Does this change anything for any water systems of any
municipalities or water conservancy districts? Currently maybe you can just
describe the bill on what it does.

Speaker 9 (01:15:49):
Yeah, so it'll change for some but not for others.
So right now, we only have two counties in the state,
Davids and Salt Lake, that adds fluoride on a county
wide level, and then there are only a handful of
municipals outside of those counties that add fluoride into their
water systems. So for those systems, we would no longer
be adding supplemental fluoride. Now that doesn't mean there's going

(01:16:09):
to be zero fluoride in the water, because all water
systems in Utah have a naturally occurring level which is
a different mineral than the fluoroscilic acid that we add. So,
for example, Salt Lake County naturally has about point four
milligrams per liter of fluoride that's just the natural element,
and the point seven milligrams per leader has historically been

(01:16:30):
the EPA recommended guideline, so they only adjust up with
the fluoroscilic acid that additional point three. So there will
still be some fluoride in the water, we're just not
adding that supplemental amount on top of what's natural. Now,
for those counties that do not add fluoride into their water.
They'll actually have increased access to the prescription fluoride through

(01:16:52):
a pharmacy. So the other portion of this bill actually
makes it so pharmacists can prescribe fluoride. So Utah County,
Washington County, your rural counties will now all be able
to go into a pharmacy without having to visit a
doctor or a dentist and pick up prescription florid just
by talking to a pharmacist representative.

Speaker 1 (01:17:10):
How much of a pushback did you get from dentists?
Were they opposed to this bill? Did they fight it hard?

Speaker 9 (01:17:17):
So it depends on the dentist and the dental association. Yes,
they were opposed to this bill, but I had dozens
of independent dentists reach out to me in support of
this policy. Because the underlying policy issue here is a
personal choice when it comes to what prescriptions you take,
and I think a lot of our dentists support that

(01:17:38):
individual choice, and so it kind of just depended on
who you talk to.

Speaker 3 (01:17:44):
I'm curious that we have two So I would have
thought this was more prevalent that fluoride in the water,
the water the culinary water I was treated it maybe
more frequently, so only two counties. So how many people
would you estimate are even impacted by It's a good bill?
Love the bill again, I think it's great legislation. How
many Utahns will be positively impacted by this bill out

(01:18:07):
of those two counties, would you say representative?

Speaker 9 (01:18:10):
So between those two counties, the Salt Lake being our
heaviest populated and then Davis being forward the top, it
comes out to right around half of this state of
Utah's population.

Speaker 1 (01:18:21):
You mentioned earlier that you were approached by a constituent
on this bill. I think it was last year. As
you've talked to people, representative, what are some of their
primary concerns. What have they told you about their concern
about fluoride in the water?

Speaker 9 (01:18:36):
Yeah? So, and I'll give you both sides. The primary
concern from people who are in support of the bill
is personal choice. I've actually met several people who are
allergic to floride. I didn't know that was a thing,
but apparently it is a thing. And then really people
who just say, you know what, it's not the government's
job to decide to medicate me, and I fully agree

(01:18:57):
with that. And on the other side, you have people
who are concerned about children's mensal health, and because that
is a very real concern, we actually pulled insurance data
on kid cavities from the last twelve months, and there
really is not any sort of significant difference between counties
that at fleriding counties that don't. Statistically it was almost identical,

(01:19:18):
which I thought was very interesting.

Speaker 3 (01:19:20):
So there's a broader conversation I think happening in America
with especially now that you see RFK Junior being confirmed
by the Senate as the head of Health and Human Services,
and it's about what is going on with our food
and what we're consuming. We seem to be a sicker society.
We're seeing allergies, We're seeing autism rates that are going
through the roof at such a scary pace. Did any

(01:19:41):
of that broader discussion come up in this bill where
people are more open minded or at least more sensitive
to or worried about the chemicals that may be in
their water or the things that we add to our
water and food for that matter, Did any of that
broader conversation come up in your bill as you went
through the process.

Speaker 9 (01:20:00):
It's in a little bit. So when we add that
fluorocylic acid. It's not just a pure fluoride, it's actually
an industrial waste product. And because of that, the state
already requires monitoring for a bunch of other substances our snack, cadmium, lead,
and about a handful of things that are really just
not good for you, which have been part of that
broader conversation. I want to say it's forty eight percent

(01:20:23):
of all floride samples for what goes into our water
system contains arsnack. And so from that overarching health perspective,
you did have a lot of people saying we don't
want these heavy metals in our water.

Speaker 1 (01:20:34):
On our Newsmaker line, one of our listen back fighting segments,
our conversation with state Representative Stephanie Grisches about prohibiting fluoride
in Utah's drinking water.

Speaker 3 (01:20:43):
Yeah, she omitted the part where she just waved her
hand said you will love this bill like at Jedi
and people would lawmakers look back here and say I
love this bill.

Speaker 1 (01:20:51):
So that's what she did.

Speaker 2 (01:20:52):
It's like a Jedime trick, that's what she did.

Speaker 1 (01:20:53):
Didn't realize her.

Speaker 2 (01:20:54):
She knows how to use the ways of the force.

Speaker 1 (01:20:57):
More coming up on the rod and Greg Show and
Talk Radio one oh five nine k n R S.
You haven't figured this out yet, right, What to massage
your ego? I let you win. You know that I
let you win. I take the conview because I know
everyone agrees with you, and you win.

Speaker 3 (01:21:12):
If that makes you feel better, you can keep saying
that I'm just happy to be here. I won't even
can do such a premise.

Speaker 1 (01:21:20):
Well, let's talk about some Republican old tricks, shall we.
Apparently the Republicans are finding that using their old tricks
are not working on Donald Trump this time.

Speaker 3 (01:21:30):
Surprise surprise, right, Ye, your little bag is empty empty.

Speaker 1 (01:21:36):
Well, we spoke about that earlier this week with Chris Bedford.
Chris is the senior editor for Politics in Washington correspondent
for The Blades Media, and we talked about the old
tricks and what the old guard of the Republican Party
is still trying to do to Donald Trump.

Speaker 12 (01:21:50):
Oh, there's so much in the first term. Donald Trump's
first term, a lot of Republicans understood, of course, that
he was the president, he was allegedly in charge of
the party, but on Capitol Hill they didn't want to
change their tune. They did learn essentially that if you
could continue doing whatever you wanted to on tax policy
or foreign policy or even immigration, so long as you

(01:22:10):
said the right words. Basically, they changed the Trump's tomb
but didn't change the lyrics, and there's a lot of
reasons they got away with that. The vice president was
someone who kind of agreed with them. Vice President Mike
Fence was much more in line with those old school
kind of Bush Air Republicans. At the same time, the
make America Great Again kind of gobberning philosophy hadn't really

(01:22:31):
been formed yet. There's a couple of things that are
pretty clear, like build the Wall, but it hadn't really
been thought out. It didn't have the think tank backgrounds.
The personnel all came from Bush and Romney and everyone else.
And after four years in the wilderness, all of that
has changed. On one level, you've got eight years now
of a sharpening ideas for what MAGA actually wants to accomplish,

(01:22:52):
worked out in think tanks, worked out by veterans of
previous administrations and thought leaders outside of it. On the secondhand,
you have White House personnel which are committed, are people
who really know what they're sending for what they want
to do. You can see that reflected in the efficiency
and the lack of leaks. And the last thing I
think a major part of this is Vice President Jed E. Vance,

(01:23:15):
who's been extremely active, extremely involved in negotiations both the
carrot and the stick, willing to jump on Twitter and
attack ideas from Senators who are saying, well, I just
want to do what Trump wants, and also willing to
meet with senators at one in the morning to try
and get confirmations over the line in the White House.
So all of those come together and the old song
and dance the Republicans are saying, listen, I'm going to

(01:23:37):
oppose what the president wants to do because that's what
the president really wants. Is not flying anymore.

Speaker 3 (01:23:43):
So, not until DOGE really got underway and we started
to see from sources like Data Republican and the search
engine there, did I have any comprehension of the amount
of money in the billions, maybe trillions that have been
shuttled from NGOs to nonprofits. This deep state and this
uniparty makes way more sense to me now because it

(01:24:03):
looks like it's just a cottage industry. Let me ask you,
do you think that the Uniparty, which I always believe
they voted weirdly similarly and did all the things you
just described in Trump's first term. Do you think the
uniparty is on its heels? Do you think it's just
weathering a Storm's the what's the fate of those that
like to say the right things but they want to

(01:24:24):
do it their own way versus really substantive and change
here going forward.

Speaker 12 (01:24:30):
They're absolutely absolutely on their heels. Mitch O'Connell gave a
speech just a week or two after Trump's resounding electoral victory.
He told the crowd of AI donors and staff that
he was going to be a resistance piece against Donald
Trump in the US Senate. He wasn't going anywhere. I don't.
I think he definitely expected they able to think some nominations,

(01:24:50):
and he tried his best and was unable to get
even Calsey Gabbert, who is surprised that you're a very
controversial pick and at the same time a lot of
the you've kind of co opted some of the bigger voices.
You have Mark Rubio, who used to be pretty pretty
don hawkish and fall in with that wing, now leading
the charge for MAGA foreign policy as Secretary of State.

(01:25:12):
I was just minutes ago in the in the first
cabinet meeting, seeing or a few hours ago, seeing Mark
Rubia sitting next to Trump and right next to them
as a representative of what the administration is trying to do.
And at the same time, a lot of his USAID
stuff was kind of a neo con grest. It was
a great place for a lot of these different places

(01:25:33):
to have republican or democracy in their title, to get
millions and millions and millions of dollars, and all of
that money drives up very quickly. You're absolutely on your heels,
but it doesn't mean it's beaten. There are certain things
that are going on right now, like President Trump's executive
order barrings are taking away security clearances as law firms
have gone after him, which is something that's largely been

(01:25:54):
practiced by other power players you know Washington, DC better
for years, but it's now just starting to be for this.
And if law firms and corporations and other groups that
back the deep state start to learn that there will
be consequences for what they do, the graver training will end.
Then you'll really see some change.

Speaker 1 (01:26:14):
Chris do you see a real change in Washington since
Donald Trump has come in. I mean, you know, first,
his first term was difficult. I think most people realize
that didn't quite have a handle on things. Do you
do you get a sense it's really really different this
time completely.

Speaker 12 (01:26:30):
He's got a political legitimacy that he did not have
in as first administration. Whether they claimed Russian collusion or whatever.
People thought of him as an irritation in their long
arc of history that Neil Librosan was still on the ascent.
He was an ugly intruder who would would soon enough
be removed, and then both Republicans and Democrats can go

(01:26:52):
back to the where the things were since then. When
you combine his comeback is winning of the national vote,
his rallying of the GEO is incredible survival of the
assassination attempt. You put that all together, and you've got
someone who's at the peak of their political power, who's
probably one of the more legitimate and established political figures

(01:27:12):
on the planet. You've got founding edator of political coming
out and saying that he's an epoch defining politician. Can
can no longer simply be dismissed, and you can see
that the signs are less, the protests and mass movement
is essentially gone. The corporations are once again involved in
DC politics for better and for worse, and a sense
of normalcy is actually returned that was completely lacking from

(01:27:36):
twenty twenty one, twenty seventeen through twenty twenty one.

Speaker 3 (01:27:40):
So where do Democrats specifically, and maybe rhino Republicans or
those that did looked, you know, looked awfully like the
Democrats did that are Republican? Where do they go from here?

Speaker 4 (01:27:51):
What?

Speaker 3 (01:27:51):
I haven't heard one thing yet that makes any sense
in terms of what they're doubling down on. What's your
assessment of where Democrats go to try and overcome the
waiver of the momentum that President Trump's experiencing right.

Speaker 12 (01:28:03):
Now Capitol Hill. Democrats seem lost. They're all over the place.
Some people are willing to stand up and fight. Some
people are just playing possum, as James Carville suggested, they do.
Some of the leaders of the Democratic Party, though, the
governors that you want to look at, people who are
on the short list for possible presidential nominations in the future, Well,

(01:28:24):
they've dialed back their rhetoric. They're still saying things like
you saw the governor of Illinois Pritzker come out and
say that Donald Trump's consolidation of power and his rise
and the GOP is very much like Adolf Hitler in
the Nazis. I think it's a serious, serious stretch. But
if you look at what they're actually doing, not just
Gavin Newsom but others, they're trying to moderate their legislatures,

(01:28:44):
moderate their policy, try to cut things that are going
to be difficult for them that the voters have rejected.
Whether they're in Illinois it's millions and millions and millions
of dollars going to healthcare for legal immigrants, or whether
it's in California money saxpayer money going to support house
house purchases by illegal immigrants. Those things are being cut
by governors who I think are trying to take the temperature.

(01:29:07):
The question for them, of course, is going to be
they were in power during a kind of a left
wing revolution of twenty twenty to twenty twenty five. They've
all been complicit at some point or another, and some
of these much more liberal policies. Then they're going to
try and push right now. Can their moderation right now
actually get some of those voters back, they're they're they're

(01:29:29):
putting a finger in the wind, and those are the
ones to watch because they seem to know what's going
on more than DC Democrats.

Speaker 1 (01:29:34):
Part of our Listen Back Friday segment conversation with Chris
Bedford with the Blades, talking about the old tricks the
Republicans are still trying to use on Donald Trump. They
just aren't working.

Speaker 3 (01:29:44):
Any They are just keep doing it, keep taking those
twenty percent issues, keep trying your old tricks.

Speaker 2 (01:29:48):
Everybody knows what you're doing. Yeah, we figure you out.

Speaker 1 (01:29:51):
Not going to work. Yep, He's smarter. Whatever you need,
tell you what. He's large and in charge right now
in the capital. All right, that does it for us
this week. We've had an enjoyable spending it with you
each and every weekday afternoon, as we like to say,
head up, shoulders back. May God bless you and your
family this great country of ours. We'll talk to you
on Monday,

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