Live from Music Row, Tuesday 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 Tea Party Patriots Action Chairman Jenny Beth Martin to the newsmaker line to talk about the unfair treatment against former President Donald Trump.
Leahy: On the newsmaker line, our very good friend Jenny Beth Martin, honorary chairman of Tea Party Patriots Action. Good morning, Jenny.
Martin: Good morning. It’s so good to be with you, Michael!
Leahy: Jenny Beth, we wake up this morning and there’s a possibility that former President Donald Trump, he said, may be arrested today on literally trumped-up charges by the Soros-funded district attorney in Manhattan. He’s under attack in Fulton County with a kind of similar trumped upset of charges, and there is a special prosecutor going after him. What’s going on here?
Martin: What’s going on in New York has to do with Stormy Daniels. Remember that her own attorney wound up going to jail when the Mueller investigation looked into Stormy Daniels, and the Department of Justice did. They never brought charges against President Trump.
They did not think that there were grounds to bring charges against him. They dropped us back in 2019, and yet a district attorney, a Soros district attorney in New York, continued to press and press and may very well wind up with an indictment from the grand jury in New York against President Trump.
Over the weekend, it seemed likely to happen based on the posts at Truth Social that Trump made. And yesterday, we heard that the grand jury is still hearing from witnesses, and there’s not an indictment coming just yet.
So we’re going to have to wait and see what happens. It seems to me this is just a continuation of the witch hunt from the people who have Trump Derangement Syndrome. They cannot stand him, and they’re doing everything that they can to discredit him and harm his reputation.
Leahy: Yes. That’s pretty much the case. When the former president came out on Saturday and said, I expect to be arrested on these trumped-up charges on Tuesday, that was probably a pretty good PR move on the part of the president. The reaction has been pretty negative towards Alvin Bragg, the DA in Manhattan.
And I saw that the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, Jim Jordan, has said he wants to have Bragg come in and testify before the Judiciary Committee. Do you think that Alvin Bragg will come and testify before the House Judiciary Committee on the reasons for this potential indictment of former President Trump?
Martin: I just don’t know if he will or not. I do see a situation in which the committee may call him, but whether he responds to that call and actually shows up, I’m not sure if that will happen or not. I’ve heard some people saying things about what Trump said might be more for publicity than not for publicity.
I suspect there’s more to it going on than that. And here’s why. It would be so complicated to arrest a former president who has secret service detail. I would imagine part of what’s going on right now is that his current attorneys are in touch with the DA’s office in New York, trying to figure out and negotiate the terms in which they would arrest President Trump and how that would happen logistically.
I don’t know that he’s really getting over his skis, and I don’t have any proof. I haven’t heard that directly from him or from anyone who worked for him. It’s just what I would imagine might be going on behind the scenes that we’re not seeing.
Leahy: Yes, exactly. Now you mentioned the secret service protection for the president. He has it because people are concerned about his personal safety. Typically, if somebody is arrested and booked, how could you have secret service protection for a former president if the former president is being arrested and booked?
Martin: Yes. I think that is a real concern. I would imagine they’d have to go sweep the police station or the sheriff’s office first and make sure that the entire place is safe and secure for a president to go inside of it. It just shows the whole world that this is a witch hunt, and it’s time for it to stop. It needs to stop.
Hillary Clinton never went to jail even though she had a problem that they deemed illegal. And how the Justice Department was going after President Trump over the documents that he still had in his possession, which were co-classified documents, in which case the president has the authority to unclassify to declassify.
And yet we now learned that the former vice presidents, both Pence and Biden, had documents in their possession for in, in Biden’s case, for years. It’s been double standards. We’re getting very close to a Banana Republic territory when it comes to the treatment of Donald Trump in this country.
And Michael, I would tell you that having been targeted by the IRS, seeing the weaponization of the government, and being a victim of the weaponization of the government firsthand, I said back then, it’s people who work for the government were not held accountable.
This could happen to other people, and the situation would get worse and worse. And I think that we have seen a worsening of the weaponization of government ever since the IRS targeting.
Listen to today’s show highlights, including this interview:
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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.
Photo “Jenny Beth Martin” by Gage Skidmore. CC BY-SA 2.0. Background Photo “Donald Trump” by Trump White House Archived.
Live from Music Row, Tuesday 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 chairman of the Tea Party Patriots Action, Jenny Beth Martin to the newsmaker line to discuss today’s SCOTUS hearing which will address the power of the executive branch in regards to Biden’s student loan forgiveness program.
Leahy: On the newsmaker line right now, our very good friend, the honorary chairman of Tea Party Patriots Action, Jenny Beth Martin. Good morning, Jenny Beth!
Martin: Good morning, Michael. It’s so good to be with you.
Leahy: Jenny Beth before we get to our discussion of the Supreme Court contemplation and consideration of a lawsuit that would basically say the student loan giveaway program should not happen and is not constitutional. Before we get to that, just a little reminder.
I looked at the calendar. Today is February 28, 2023. You may recall, 14 years ago yesterday, on February 27, 2009, you and I and about two dozen other Tea Party activists organized the very first series of Tea Parties, I think in about 50 cities. We had had a bunch of folks turn out, and then that led to the big Tax Day Tea Party on April 15, 2009. Jenny Beth, we’ve been at this now for over 14 years.
Martin: It’s been a very long time. And Michael, your audience should know that the first round of Tea Party events would not have happened if you’d not started Top Conservatives on Twitter and found a way to start connecting people who were conservative on social media. It’s easy to take that for granted today.
You began that in 2008, right after the election, I believe, and that’s how I was able to get connected with others around the country and not just be connected with those in my own local, county, and state. So thank you for that.
Leahy: Isn’t it fascinating? You talk about Twitter. We did start Top Conservative on Twitter, and that’s how we connected all of what became the Tea Party activists. It started out with that. But what’s interesting, Twitter in 2009 was a lot different than Twitter in 2022 and now 2023, wasn’t it?
Martin: It really was, and there weren’t as many people on it. And I think that from a historical standpoint, the organizing that we did for those first rounds of Tea Parties was one of the first times Twitter had been used that way in such an organic manner.
And we’ve gone on to see that happen with many other movements and events around the entire world, frankly. But it’s easy to take for granted the way hashtags unite people now or trend and get news today. But back then, it was not an everyday occurrence.
Leahy: And you know what was interesting about that, Jenny Beth? When I started the Top Conservatives on the Twitter list and we started talking back and forth and having regular communications, I went from no followers on Twitter to like, 17,000, right?
And that was like, within six months. And then from mid-2009 to 2022, I went from 17,000 to like, 13,000. (Laughter) And only since Musk purchased Twitter and then I’ve been doing, as you have, a lot of appearances on WarRoom with Stephen K Bannon, now I’m back up to 16,800. So, you know, Twitter is a little more open than it was during that, I don’t know, you call it 12 years in the wilderness right between mid-2009 and 2021.
But it is fascinating how you and I have been working at this for 14 years, and now you’ve founded Tea Party Patriots, and now that you’re the honorary chairman of Tea Party Patriots Action, there is a Supreme Court case on the Biden student loan forgiveness program. Bring us up to speed on that.
Martin: It’s happening today, actually. They will hear arguments on two related cases, Biden versus Nebraska and the Department of Education versus Brown. And the question is whether the executive branch has the authority on its own to cancel the student loan debt program.
And I would contend that that absolutely is not something that the executive branch can do because it’s taking away the power of the purse from Congress and putting it in the hands of the executive branch single-handedly without going through the law-making process of passing bills in Congress and then being signed into law.
And this is a very significant amount of money, but it’s more than just the amount of money. It’s about whether the executive branch has the right to do this and if they can do it with a student loan program and if the court decides this is constitutional and absolutely allowable, where will it stop?
I think that if this is allowed, what will eventually happen is that Congress will no longer have the power of the purse at all, which violates the balance of powers and the checks and balances written into the Constitution.
Leahy: My guess is that this will end up being both cases will be six-three losses for the Biden administration. Your thoughts on where you see this going?
Martin: I think so. And the reason for that is that we’ve already seen that the Supreme Court struck down mandates that are related to COVID. So we’ve already seen that they have done that. And very importantly, last year that they ruled in West Virginia versus the EPA that the executive branch, when they are taking actions that involve major economic and political significance, requires, the court said, clear congressional authorization. And on this particular loan forgiveness program or student loan debt giveaway, it does not have that clear authorization from Congress.
Leahy: Do we anticipate a Supreme Court ruling coming down in June on this?
Martin: That is what I would imagine. Now, I’m not a Supreme Court expert and I’m not an attorney, but usually, they do wait until June. And so I would imagine this would be one in June and probably one closer to the end of the month than the beginning of the month.
Leahy: Yes, that’s my take on it as well. Tell us a little bit about the agenda of Tea Party Patriots Action. What are the big issues that you’re working on?
Martin: As we look through the end of this year, in 2023, and through next year in 2024, we continue to work to secure elections. I think we still have a lot of work to do with that. But also it’s just a never-ending project because there are always more elections and we have to make sure that the elections are secure. So we are going to continue to work on that.
But I also want to win and I think it’s very important, important that we have faith in the outcome of the elections, regardless of who wins. And then as a conservative activist, I hate losing and I don’t want to see socialists control this country. So we’re working on both winning and securing elections.
Listen to today’s show highlights, including this interview:
– – –
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.
Photo “Jenny Beth Martin” by Jenny Beth Martin. Background Photo “Supreme Court of the United States” by Adam Szuscik.
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 to the newsmaker line Jenny Beth Martin, co-founder of the Tea Party Patriots and columnist for The Washington Times, to discuss the rise of inflation, social security, and helping train American citizens to be poll watchers and workers.
Leahy: On a newsmaker line my very good friend since 2009, one of the early organizers of the Tea Party movement way back then, with Mark Meckler and Christina Botteri, Dana Lash, and myself, now the honorary chairman of Tea Party Patriots, Jenny Beth Martin. Good morning, Jenny Beth. How are you today?
Martin: I am great. It’s so good to be with you, Michael.
Leahy: It’s always a pleasure to talk with you. And we have been involved in numerous activities to promote the three core values of the Tea Party movement fiscal responsibility, free market, and constitutionally limited government multiple times.
We keep running into each other at various events around the country. And right now, Jenny Beth, you want to talk about the out-of-control inflation that the Biden maladministration has imposed upon the United States.
Martin: Michael, this inflation is just crushing families. If the increases in price froze today, over the next year, American families would spend, on average, over $8,000 more in the cost of goods than they did in the previous year.
And that’s if the price increases freeze. And there’s no sign that that’s going to happen at all right now. This administration is spending more money, and it has increased taxes, not decreased taxes. It is the exact opposite of what you need to do when you’re trying to get the economy under control.
Leahy: I just saw a report that it’s expected that next year Social Security payments are going to increase by over 8 percent, and Social Security recipients are saying 8 percent? That’s not even enough to keep up with inflation. Your thoughts on that?
Martin: I understand why they need to increase it because the cost of everything that they are doing is also increasing. The problem is that you get into this very concerning spiral where the prices increase, the wages increase, or in this case, Social Security increases.
And then as those increases become more expensive for businesses. So if it’s Social Security or a business, especially a business, they’re going to raise prices even further to make up for the increase in wages. And so then prices go up, and people need higher wages. And we’re in this very bad spiral right now.
The way out of it is to grow the economy. And this administration does not know how to grow an economy. And putting more money into Social Security out there that’s going to cause the same problem because it’s government money. And part of the problem is we’ve got way too much government money flooding the market.
Leahy: It’s more than 13 and a half years since you and I and several others helped organize the launch of the Tea Party movement. How would you say we’re doing, and are you optimistic or pessimistic about the future? What are the next steps to preserve our constitutional republic here in the United States?
Martin: What I have released over the last 13 years, Michael, is that liberty requires eternal vigilance. We all have heard that phrase we heard it growing up. The reason that it has stuck and that it resonates so much with me is because it’s true.
And what I mean by that is that if you want to live free, you’re always going to have to be working hard to hold on to that freedom. And as Ronald Reagan said, it doesn’t pass from one generation to the next in our bloodstream.
So I’m pessimistic at the moment, but I’m optimistic about the future because what I have learned is that Americans want to be free and we always step up to the plate, and in the end, freedom will rain. It may take us a while to get there, but in the end, we will always choose freedom in America.
Leahy: You’re the honorary chairman of the Tea Party Patriots. Tell us a little bit about some of the programs that the Tea Party Patriots organizations are engaged in as we are about three weeks and four days until the midterm elections.
Martin: There are two really important things that we’re engaged in that people can check us out and get involved. One is, through Tea Party Patriots Action, which is our 501 (c) (4), nonprofit, we are working to help people become poll watchers and in the rare instances where poll workers are still needed, helping with that.
And we’ve got a website set up that is just for helping people sign up to be poll watchers. And then we’re trying to plug them in, get them training, tell them how to get involved so they can become a poll watcher and observe the elections and help us restore some of the faith that we’ve lost in the outcome of our elections.
And the other thing is that our 527 Super PAC has endorsed candidates, and we’re working to send text messages and hand-addressed mail to voters in key areas around the country to help increase the vote.
And we call it, instead of peer-to-peer texting, voter-to-voter texting because it’s real volunteers who are voters reaching out to other voters asking for the vote.
Leahy: It seems to me that having poll watchers that are trained is a very good idea, but I’m seeing some reports in the media and the left that people think that’s a bad idea. I can’t understand that. Can you explain that to me?
Martin: Why are they afraid of having checks and balances on the election and making sure that as citizens we are exercising the guardrails that we’re legally entitled to do to make sure the elections are transparent and honest?
Leahy: Crom Carmichael, our original all-star panelist in studio has a question for you.
Carmichael: Yes. What does a trained poll worker do?
Martin: There’s a difference in a poll worker and a poll watcher. A worker is a person who’s trained by usually the local government, and they’re the ones who check a voter into the voting precinct to make sure that the voter gets marked off the poll pad and gives the voter their ballot or their card to put into the ballot marking device.
After the voter votes, guides the voter to where the ballot box has put the ballot in the box, and then they close down the precinct at the end of the night. That is a worker. In some precincts, it’s called a judge or an inspector of an election, or an election official.
It’s a person working the election, and usually, they are paid people. A watcher is someone who is not allowed to talk in almost all instances and can watch the election.
They usually have to be appointed by a political party or a candidate, and they observe what is happening in the election. If they see a problem, they usually are able to leave the precinct, go outside, pick up the phone and make a phone call to a hotline.
Listen to today’s show highlights, including this interview:
– – –
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.
Photo “Jenny Beth Martin” by Gage Skidmore. CC BY-SA 2.0.
