Caller Karl Wins Bet with Leahy and Gives Political Advice to Republicans

Live from Music Row Friday morning on The Tennessee Star Report with Michael Patrick Leahy – broadcast on Nashville’s Talk Radio 98.3 and 1510 WLAC weekdays from 5:00 a.m. to 8:00 a.m. –  host Leahy welcomed the original all-star panelist Crom Carmichael to the studio and Caller Karl to the newsmakers line who suggested that Republicans could learn a thing or two from the Democrats’ relentless call action.

Leahy: Crom Carmichael is here. The original all-star panelist. There have been a lot of angry calls Crom. There have been a lot of unhappy and sad calls.

Carmichael: Sad calls?

Leahy: Sad calls from callers.

Carmichael: Is this a happy call?

Leahy: This caller is very very happy today. He is going to be delighted about what he’s about to tell us. Karl from Nashville. Karl welcome to The Tennessee Star Report.

Carmichael: What he’s about to tell you.

Leahy: Yeah, what he’s about to tell me. (Laughter) Karl, welcome to the Tennessee Star Report.

Caller Karl: In the words of the big guy in 48 hours, pay what you owe! That’s a classic scene. (Leahy laughs) The guy just ran his whole hand through the window and tried to grab Eddie Murphy through the whole window. That was a good scene.

Leahy: Karl, you and I have a bet don’t we?

Karl: We do.

Leahy: And the bet was who would be inaugurated president. How long ago did we make this bet?

Karl: It’s been three maybe four months.

Carmichael: It was before the election.

Leahy: It was long before the election. And Karl, the loser of this bet buys the other dinner. And you said, Joe Biden will be inaugurated president and I said Donald Trump would be. Do you have a message for me this morning? (Laughs)

Karl: You know what, I’m not going to gloat on that. I’m going to be a good caller and play to your format. And the question you asked earlier this morning about what do conservatives need to do? That’s a damn good question. And I’m going to answer it as a politician would answer it. I’m going to get really political with you here.

Carmichael: Let Karl answer.

Leahy: Carl answer. Go ahead. Answer the question.

Carmichael: I want to know what he says.

Karl: It’s twofold. Step number one. If you don’t like Stacey Abrams whatever. What she did was this. She was ticked off about what happened in the election in Georgia. But instead of pouting and taking her ball and going home, Stacey Abrams said you know what? I see a problem whether you think it’s a problem or not, I’m going to do something about it. So she did something about it.

Not only in Georgia but Stacey did something about it not only in Arizona but Nevada as well and Michigan and other states. She grew her organization and she organized and got disenfranchised people out there to vote. Number two, Republicans and conservative, you might not want to hear this. But you can’t depend on the Southern strategy anymore.

Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, North Carolina, South Carolina in the old Deep South is waking up to a new reality. Black people are politically aware. And if you do not talk to people and try and get their votes and just try to depend on the majority of the country to push you over the top that’s not working anymore. That’s my two cents and my you know, my input here.

Karl: Do you have a political consulting firm? No this is a serious question.

Carmichael: Both of the things that Karl has just said are entirely accurate.

Leahy: Entirely accurate. Would you like me to introduce you to the people at the Republican National Committee?

Carmichael: He’s not interested.

Karl: They won’t listen. I mean if you see what they did and you know as well as I know for whatever reason midterm elections Black people tend not to show up. Special elections to be brutally honest they do not show up. But for whatever reason they are. And Stacey Abrams love her or hate her she has woken a sleeping giant. And there’s a lot of Black people in the South that do not get out and vote because the Democrats, I’m talking about their fault. Their ills.

They refuse to put people up for election in places that they think they’re going to lose. Jamie Harrison, The reason why he got so many votes in South Carolina is that he did something really really odd. He asked people for their votes in places that were not normally seeing a person like him as for a vote. And that’s what you have to do on the Democrat side.  They have to say you know, what? Why are we conceding Alabama, Mississippi, and Montana? Why? Ask for their vote and they may give it to you.

Leahy: Karl, I’m not joining but I think this is very sound advice that you are giving both parties. I think you nailed it.

Carmichael: He’s not giving the Democratic Party that advice.

Leahy: They are already doing it. It’s the Republicans that need your voice. (Chuckles)

Karl: The Democrats do need to go in other places in Tennessee to ask for the vote. You may be surprised that someone will give you their vote if you ask for it.

Carmichael: Do you think that Trump in 2016 did exactly what you are recommending now?

Karl: Listen, I’ve been paying attention to politics forever. What Donald Trump successfully did is that he said the quiet parts out loud and got people that normally say I’m not interested in this stuff. I don’t want to be involved in politics because they are all this that and the other. And you had regular politicians that will skate around things. Whether it was ugly, nasty, whatever you may think of what he said and how he said it. Right?

I always say this right here. There is no more conservative political person in this country than Mike Huckabee. And I’ve been listening to Republicans for 40-50 years that say they want a conservative. Stop putting RINOS in. we want a conservatives conservative. Well, Mike Huckabee was there running for president in 2015 throughout ’16. He didn’t get it. And there is nobody as conservative as that man.

Donald Trump beat them all because Donald Trump got out there and said the think the quiet Parts out loud. He didn’t use you know, the old dog whistle he used the bullhorn. (Leahy chuckles) A book that I read where a guy said and told the other guy to get out there and say something. You are allowed to be rambunctious. Sometimes you make sense. So go out there and say it and they might listen to you. He said the quiet parts out loud.

Leahy: Karl, we’ve got about a minute here. So you won the bet. You have won the bet! And I am going to buy you dinner. Now, do you want steak or hamburger? What do you want? You get to pick. Where would you like to go? We have to figure out when and where. But I am buying you dinner.

Karl: I am a patient man. I like steak.

Leahy: I’ll do steak.

Karl: Let’s get to the point where 4,000 Americans aren’t dying a day because of the pandemic.

Leahy: That’s a very good point. I have another bet that I have to pay off to a couple of friends. (Laughs) Some Ivy League friends that I will have dinner with. But we probably aren’t going to do that until the fall with those friends because they live out of state. What’s your favorite steakhouse by the way?

Karl: Remember when I told you when we made the bet. I’m not going to try and break the bank or be greedy.

Leahy: You won the bet. I like steak.

Karl: My favorite steak is a marinated rib-eye from Rafferty’s.

Leahy: Rafferty’s. Is that where you’d like to go then?

Karl: Absolutely.

Leahy: We’ll buy your favorite. I’m buying. But when do you think it’s likely? By the way, stay through the break because I want to make sure that Squeegy our producer gets your phone number. When do you think we’ll be able to do this?

Karl: You know what? When science says it’s safe. I can’t put a time on it. When science says it’s safe then we can do that. If we have to wait a year. Let’s keep breathing.

Listen to the full third hour here:

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Tune in weekdays from 5:00 – 8:00 a.m. to the Tennessee Star Report with Michael Patrick Leahy on Talk Radio 98.3 FM WLAC 1510. Listen online at iHeart Radio.