RADIOJuly 21, 2022

How BlackRock uses YOUR MONEY to push ESG & far-left plans

BlackRock — the largest asset manager in the WORLD — lost an unprecedented 17 BILLION DOLLARS over the last 6 months. BlackRock’s losses are in part due to the overall market downturn, Vivek Ramaswamy tells Glenn. BUT the policies BlackRock continues to push, like ESG, are responsible for today's struggling market. Ramaswamy, author of ‘Nation of Victims,’ describes just how toxic ESG policies are to America, to our economy, and most recently, to energy companies and oil supplies around the WORLD. And, thanks to BlackRock, it’s only getting worse. Plus, he explains how YOUR money could be helping BlackRock push ESG and other far-left initiatives and plans…

Transcript

Below is a rush transcript that may contain errors

GLENN: Vivek, my friend, how are you, sir?

VIVEK: Good to talk to you, Glenn. How are you?

GLENN: Very, very good. You are a guy, who I think -- one of the few that actually really gets ESG and the Great Reset. Believes and understands how dangerous it is, and is working to educate people, and also help us beat it. Let me -- let me start with what's happening with ESG and BlackRock.

Is -- is BlackRock's downturn in their profits, is this something that is caused by ESG? Or is this just the downturn of the market, that everybody is feeling?

VIVEK: Well, the answer to that question, Glenn, is it is both of those things. In part, because BlackRock is contributing to the downturn in the market that everyone is feeling because of ESG.

So I'll explain to you how that works. Where, this is the largest asset manager in the world, managing over $10 trillion. $10 trillion.

About half the U.S. GDP in the hands of one firm. And if you add Vanguard and State Street to the list, the top three, they manage more than the U.S. do. And what they do, they're aggregating the money of everyday citizens -- probably most people listening to this program, actually. Probably you and me included. Which, we don't know it, through our 401(k) accounts, through pension fund accounts, et cetera. And what they do, is they use that money to advocate for these ESG policies in corporate America. Climate change plans. Emissions caps. Diversity, equity, inclusion quota systems for race and gender on board, et cetera. They use our money to advocate for those principles in corporate America, that makes companies less successful. And as we've seen this year, has actually contributed to stock market declines, as well, in my opinion. And the ESG specific funds, this year, Glenn. Have underperformed the broader market as a whole. Even though the broader market as a whole, have done badly enough. And I think a big reason why the broader market has done badly. Is because of these demands of these ESG-linked asset managers. But the ESG-specific funds have done even worse. So the answer to your question, is there a downturn because of the broader market? Or is it because of the failures of ESG?

The answer is both. Because part of the reason the broader market is turning down, is exactly because of some of these toxic policies, that cause companies to focus on these social agendas.

GLENN: So let me ask you if -- because this -- I'm -- I'm not an investor guy. I really -- I mean, I should never be around money. I'm horrible at investing. However, it's -- it would be my feeling, that if you are in a place, to where oil is as scarce as it is, if we didn't have ESG, wouldn't the -- the energy market be the place to put your money, or is that just a Glenn Beck, you know, thought?

VIVEK: You know what, it's not just Glenn Beck. It's Warren Buffett, quietly starting to behave this way too, Glenn. So you might give yourself a little bit more credit, than you just did.

But actually, if you think about it, you know, this is -- the potential moment for U.S. energy to really shine, and rise to the occasion. Not just as an investment proposition. But as a proposition to meet the needs of Americans, at a time when there's a massive supply/demand imbalance, right? You remember, as recently as 2018, the U.S. was the world's largest producer of energy. How quickly things have changed now, with the U.S. president groveling in front of foreign dictators around the world, begging them to produce more oil, that the U.S. could be producing instead.

And now, I know the Biden administration is trying to walk this back. I think a lot of ESG managers like BlackRock are trying to walk this back, and say, well, we didn't really want to end fossil fuel production. Actually, he's making good on a campaign promise. In September of 2019, on the campaign trail, I'm quoting him exactly. Here's what President Biden. Then candidate Biden said, I guarantee you, we're going to end fossil fuels, end quote.

That was a campaign promise, that he's now delivering on. But he has multiple tools to deliver on it. Because normally the way constitutionally, you would deliver on that campaign projects. You would get a law passed through Congress. Well, he doesn't have the political support to do that.

American people haven't given Congress the political support to do that. Joe Manchin won't even stand in the way of doing -- won't even allow that to happen. And so what are they doing now?

They're resorting to other means, like executive action. Through the climate change emergency. We'll see -- we'll hear more about what that means. They're doing it through the private sector.

Deputizing the cronies like BlackRock, many of whose alumni, by the way, work in the Biden administration. But large private sector actors, they do favors for them, in return for those private actors, doing it through the back door, what government could not get done through the front door through Congress, the constitutionally ordained way for actually passing laws.

So he's delivering on that campaign promise, but doing it through the back door in ways that I think will make our Founding Fathers shun her, if they actually knew the way the government was -- was treating big -- private sector and using the invisible fist of government, instead of the invisible hand of the market to actually reach these outcomes.

GLENN: So one more -- one more question on -- on food now. Would food be the same thing? Because we have -- we have the ability. We have the property. The land. We have the farmers. We have the history of being the world's breadbasket. If it wasn't for ESG, wouldn't this be the time that farming would be the best kind of investment, where you would -- we would be selling our wheat and our food, all over the world. We would literally be feeding the world. If it wasn't for ESG. Am I wrong on that?

VIVEK: And at a time when there's real demand and need for it as well.

GLENN: Correct.

VIVEK: So, Glenn, these are all part of the same categories. Because energy is upstream of food production as well. Right?

It takes energy to transport food, to be able to export food, to be able to produce food, to be able to put the ingredients together. So I agree with you. I kind of look at energy as even more fundamental. Because it's upstream of nearly every other sector and nearly every other production means. But the thing for people to understand here, is that this is -- this is damage that's been done in the last few years, by the merger of public power and private power. So that's what makes it so hard to find the source. Because the one hand, Biden can say, this is not my fault. This is just the decisions of the private sector, that stop drilling for oil. That stop fracking for a natural gas. We didn't do that. There's no policy that you could point to. But, actually, the reason why they're doing it is because of the ESG movement in the private sector, that this administration, and the modern left, supports through the back door.

So that's kind of how they're able to really trick the public, through this Jiu Jitsu move, saying that, oh, this isn't the private -- this isn't us passing laws to do this. We're just seeing the private sector under investigation. Oil and gas. That's why they feel gas prices are high. When, in fact, they're responsible for causing it. And that's what people need to wake up to.

GLENN: Okay. So they are -- they are not talking to the American people about this. They're blaming the private sector. And that usually means the investors and the companies. But the investors are not necessarily a part of this. A lot of us are invested in these companies. Through our 401(k) et cetera, et cetera.

And we're not telling the companies to do this. Do the companies want to do this, or is it based just on the pressure from places like BlackRock who have a lot of those shares, because we've -- we run our money through BlackRock for our 401(k)s.

VIVEK: It's really the latter, Glenn. So the U.S. energy sector. The potential of U.S. energy to be able to supply not only America's needs, but the global needs is staggering. And this isn't just a policy failure. It's an American travesty, when those same countries have been hamstrung from being able to do their jobs. Now, most people choose -- choose (cut out). Production. This is the travesty, and then. It's the fraud of our time. When Americans are paying for $5 a gallon at the pump on the one hand. Want knowing that their own 401(k) accounts, and brokerage accounts are actually subsidizing the very ESG agenda that gives them 5-dollar gas in the first place. And I think that once people start to see that with clear eyes, the good news, is we find our way to a better way forward. To say, we're not going to let somebody else abuse my money. Abuse my savings. To be able to send messages to the U.S. energy industry, that I absolutely don't want to be delivering to the U.S. energy industry. I want them to make great products.
That's actually what I think accepting this battle looks like.

GLENN: Well, we have a ton of states now, that are looking to move their money. And, you know, all of the pension funds and everything else.

We have a lot of states that want to do that. We have a lot of people that want to do that. But I'm assuming, this is what you're working on. You -- I think you told us, last time you were on. That you were going to start something, and go right after BlackRock. And is that -- is that happening?

VIVEK: I started to strive earlier this year. Creating a firm. To compete head-on versus BlackRock. These are problems, Glenn, created in the market, that need to be solved through the market. So that's where I started to strive. And we'll take these guys. And I've learned a lot over the last few months, even. About how broken that pension fund system, at the state level really is.

And this isn't even a Republican or a Democrat issue. You know, we talk about -- you want to talk about the Deep State and the federal government. I think it exists at the state level. I think it exists at the corporate level.

These are institutionalized, bureaucratized actors. That you know BlackRock and State Street and Vanguard, they've mastered this system over the last ten to 20 years. And it's an ossified system, that in absence of everyday citizens speaking up and demanding change. You'll have a mid-level bureaucrat, who will happily sit and collect his paycheck, without wanting to be board. That's going to say, well, this is what I've done. And I'm not going to pay any more if I serve my citizens or not, so leave me alone. You know, I'm overstating the case. But only by a little bit. Which is exactly how many of these mid-level bureaucrats at the state level think, or even communicate. And I think at the end of the day, the right answer is going to come from everyday citizens demanding change. Kind of what you saw on a small scale, the school boards last year. Parents taking educational control back into their own hands, not leaving it to some sort of bureaucratized school board and saying, that it's your job to educate my children. No, they're my children. And I have a say in how do you they're educated. It's the equivalent. I think bottom-up. You know, sort of a positive revolution of sorts, that we need to see.

GLENN: Yeah.

VIVEK: To say, this is my hard-earned savings. I want to take control. Just like, it's my kids, it's my money. It's not your money. It's definitely not your money, BlackRock. That's what we're going to need to say.

GLENN: Yeah. I -- I -- I think the same thing could be said, for what we saw with Afghanistan.

I mean, just this audience, raised almost $50 million, in -- in like three weeks. To go and save and rescue people. From the Afghanistan debacle.

We flew the last plane. This was the deal we had to make with the State Department. That we could get our people out, if our first plane, that flew out, would carry our special forces. We're the ones that paid for that.

I mean, it's incredible. But it's also a great -- a great example of what a group of people can do, if they really set their mind for it.

Vivek, hang on just for one minute, I have one more question for you. But first I have to tell you about the Tuttle Twins. They have a powerful, powerful new book. It's called American history. 1215 to 1776. It is a history book. It's a storybook. It's not about the dates and the -- and the memorization of names. It's about the ideas.

Because that's what history is supposed to teach us. What idea replaced the old idea? And how did we get there? And what did we learn from it? If you learn from history, and not the names and the dates, if you learn from the story, you'll be able to apply that to our future. And that's what's missing right now. We don't know our own history. We're not teaching why fascism. How it came about. Why it happened. And how bad it was. We're not teaching -- we're teaching more that than of communism.

We're not even teaching what worked here in America. And what set us apart. The Tuttle Twins book, does it. They have an amazing deal right now. They're throwing in 200 pages of companion curriculum, and activities. An audiobook version. Videos to help the lessons from the book to come alive. It's like 250 pages itself. Your kids will love it. You will love it. I think every American home, needs to have a copy of American history. By the Tuttle Twins, in their home. TuttleTwinsBeck.com. TuttleTwinsBeck.com. You can preview a free sample of the chapter, and you can see for yourself, why it's, I think crucial to own. It's TuttleTwinsBeck.com. Ten-second station ID.
(music)
Vivek, earlier this week, I came back from vacation, and I -- I said, the most important story, since I've been gone, was the Sri Lanka, overthrow of the government. And kicking out of the president. Because, the World Economic Forum said, this is the motto. And there was a story up at WEF.org. That said, the headline was, how we're going to make Sri Lanka rich by 2025. So they implemented all of this stuff. They did everything the World Economic Forum said to do. And I talked about it, and read that story, on the air. By the time I got off the air, the World Economic Forum had taken that story off of their website.

But do you agree that Sri Lanka is the example that we should all be looking at, saying, they're the ones who did it. And look how it turned out.

VIVEK: I think it's a great example, unfortunately, Glenn, I would like to see it is the example. Unfortunately, we're seeing more and more examples by the day. Look at what's happening in Ghana. Look at what's happening in the Netherlands. Look at what's happening in the United States and Canada, at a smaller scale.

We have an energy supply shortage that we just talked about in this country. But you're right, Sri Lanka is a great example, to see what happens when these toxic philosophies are taken to their logical extent.

And, you know, I think this is a trans national issue, Glenn. It's a trans partisan issue. Goes beyond partisan boundaries, national boundaries. It is a global monarchy. And it's going to take a revolution to fight it.

GLENN: I agree. I agree. You're exactly right. Vivek, thank you so much. Be a part of that revolution. Because we're in one, whether you like it or not. And we don't need to pick up our guns. We need to inform ourselves and inform our neighbors. Knowledge, knowledge is power.

THE GLENN BECK PODCAST

"Everything is For Sale" — How the Cartels Control Mexico's Government

It is widely accepted that the cartels in Mexico not only control significant swaths of land, but they also have incredible influence over how the country's government operates. Border Expert Brandon Darby sits down with Glenn Beck to explain exactly why this is the case and what the Trump administration's strategy truly needs to be in order to crush these powerful cartels.

Watch Glenn Beck's FULL Interview with Brandon Darby HERE

We're being played. THIS is the REAL threat to America

Conservatives in America are being divided over the wrong things. Glenn Beck asks: Who’s the real threat to America: Sen. Mike Lee, who wants to sell 3% of federally-owned land to states and cities, or the rising radical communist wing of the Democratic Party, who recently chose Zohran Mamdani as their NYC mayoral candidate?

Transcript

Below is a rush transcript that may contain errors

GLENN: I want to talk to you about the enemy being clear. Crystal clear!

But I'm not sure to everybody.

I'm so sick and tired of us turning on each other.

We saw it with Elon Musk and Donald Trump. I like both men. Can we stop?

Thankfully, they did.

You're seeing it with Trump's bombing of Iran. Where you were either a Jew-loving Zionist or raging anti-Semite, or if you're me.

Both!

And then there's something that really caught me off-guard. The people who are turning on Utah Senator Mike Lee over a housing proposal, he's had this housing proposal since 2022.

But if you go on X, you're going to learn, apparently Mike Lee, one of the most Constitutional loving conservatives I know, wants to sell off our national parks and forest.

You know, he was probably in Coeur d'Alene lighting the matches, because he hates our forest so much. He wants to make sure you never get to hunt.

All he wants to do is take away your fishing and hunting rights. And build cheap housing complexes. Amazon warehouses. And whatever China and BlackRock want.

You know, I addressed this a few weeks ago. I invited Mike to clarify where he stands. Because some of my family are very concerned.

You can find the segments on my YouTube channel. Go and subscribe to my YouTube channel. Will you please? But since then, apparently, there's a crusade out to cancel Senator Lee.

There have been a few major updates. So today, let me just take a look at just the facts here, where we stand on this right now.

Over the weekend, Mike Lee decided to withdraw his federal land sale provision from the big, beautiful bill.

He said, quote, while this has been a tremendous amount of misinformation, and in some cases, outright lies about my bill. Many people brought forward sincere concerns.

Because of the strict constraints of the budget reconciliation process, I was unable to secure clear, enforceable safeguards to guarantee, these lands would never be sold.

Only to American families. Not to China. To not BlackRock.

And never to any foreign interests.

Wow! What a shill for the globalists, right?

Or maybe how it should work. Members of Congress propose something presented to the people. And then they listen to the community. Instead of just insisting, we have to pass it, to know what's in it.

And I didn't hear this kind of outcry for that!

Here's one of the bigger issues here. We're speaking two different languages.

A lot of criticism online is that Mike Lee wants to sell off our public lands!

Our public lands. Pragmatism to a lot of Americans, those lands are the lands we use for recreation. And hiking. And haunting. And fishing.

And things like that. That's whatnot he wanted to sell. And he promised to make that much clearer in the revised bill.

Now, let me remind you, on the public lands. President Biden, under his administration. The federal government was ordered to conserve 30 percent of our lands. And our waters by 2030. So apparently, our public lands are being gobbled up even more.

That's another, I think six percentage points. Another 6 percent of the entire land in the United States, going to be seized by the federal government, by 2030. And it falls directly in line with the UN's 30 by 30 plan.

It's an initiative for governments to seize 30 percent of all land and water by 2030. Now, do you think the UN wants to give you more hunting and fishing land?

Do you think they're all for that? Or do you think these radical environmentalists want to restrict your access in the name of fighting climate change?

By the way, current -- currently, the US government owns 640 million acres of land. That's nearly a third of the country. So they've almost met that 30 by 30 goal.

And they will meet it, and then what's next? The 50 by 50 UN goal.

And in order to seize the rest of the land, there's the Sustains Act that passed. Do you know about this? I didn't hear about any outcry for this.

Where was the right on this one? It was enacted in 2023, allows the government to receive private funds to advance conservation programs.

So BlackRock, if they wanted to, could buy up the conservation lands! Does your property contribute to pollination, photosynthesis. The air we breathe. The water we drink?

Well, as I -- as I exposed, on a show back in September, the Sustains Act allows all of that to be monetized through the relationship of private investors like Bill Gates. And the government!

And it occurs without the landowners permission.

So they can take your land. Or tell you exactly what you want to do, or what they want you to do on that land, what you cannot do on that land, because photosynthesis happens.

Where was I?

Where were you on that?

This is the real seizing of American assets.

This is the real seizing of American assets, by the global corporations. That you were all so afraid of!

Mike Lee, oh, my gosh.

What about the Sustains Act?

In his revised bill. Which he's still working on.

Lee has promised to remove all forest land. Good. Significantly reduce the amount of BLM land in the bill.

Good. Only land within 5 miles of population centers is eligible.

Yeah. But when he gets that, then he'll build buildings there, and then he'll have another five.

And next thing you know, he will be putting a cap on -- on Old Faithful.

He'll establish freedom zones to ensure these lands benefit American families. Ranchers. Recreational users. But there's a lot of claims online.

Whatever.

Charlie Kirk said, the Democrats -- this is their war on single family housing.

Hmm.

Do you remember when we talked on the program about the globalist plan of 15-minute cities. That all of BlackRock and everything else is for.

Remember when BlackRock came in, and just started buying up whole neighborhoods. Just priced every regular citizen out of the neighborhood.

Why?

Because it's part of the plan to pack the majority of humanity into easily controllable cities where everything you need is just 15 minutes away. And you never need a car. But is that the American dream?

Currently, rural land is getting so expensive. Most Americans can't afford rural land!

I know. I'm living in a place that has a population of 400 -- I think it's 51. Might have had a baby, so maybe it's 452. And nobody can afford it.

How is it possible you're living in the middle of nowhere, with a population of 451 people, and you can't afford a house!

The elites don't need Mike Lee's proposal. But take more of your land.

They're already doing that. But here's my biggest issue.

This is not about Mike Lee's proposal. Okay?

It's not.

There is a much bigger issue.

And I'll share that when I come back.

GLENN: Welcome to the Glenn Beck Program. So I was talking about federal -- I want to get off that. I want to change to, instead, what the real problem here is.

What the real problem is. The real problem on the seizing of the federal lands. Is that we are so quick to turn on ourselves.

We are so quick, lately, to turn on our -- our allies.

See, that's -- the issue isn't Mike Lee's proposal.

It's how fast we turn on each other!

If you believe Mike Lee's proposal didn't go far enough to safeguard our land from adversaries. Great!

That's fine. And, you know what, you won!

He's revamping that.

He listened.

The government listened. Good!

But can you say that without calling him a traitorous shill for the elites?

I mean, I don't know what traitorous shill for the elites that actually listens.

Do you?

Donald Trump Jr. He was against my plan. He thanked him over the weekend for pulling the proposal saying, quote, Mike is a great friend. And we usually agree on almost everything. But this was a rare exemption of where we didn't! Hello!

We don't need to hear people tear each other down. Who is our real enemy?

Who is -- who is more dangerous?

Can we go to -- can we go?

I don't have number on these, unfortunately. Six.

Seven, eight, nine, ten. Let's go to cut ten, please, on whiter neighborhoods.

VOICE: I realized there's a policy proposal, and I'm going to quote it for folks to shift the tax burden from overtaxed homeowners in the outer bureaus toward expensive homes in richer and whiter neighborhoods.

Explain why you are bringing race into your tax proposal.

VOICE: That is just a description of what we see right now.

It's not driven by race.

It's more of an assessment of what neighborhoods are being undertaxed versus overtaxed. We've seen time and again, that this is a property tax system that is inequitable. It's one that actually Eric Adams ran on, saying that he would change in the first 100 days.

He since sought to defend it, and lost at every juncture in court.

VOICE: And I understand, you're saying, we're simply describing the types of neighborhood that would see these increases in taxes.

And yet by invoking race, do you run the risk of potentially alienating key constituents.

STU: I think I'm just naming things as they are. And ultimately, my -- the thing that motivates me in this, is to create a system of fairness.

It's not to work backwards from an original assessment of our neighborhood or our city. Rather, it's to ensure that we actually have an equal playing field.

And right now, what we see with the property tax system, is one that is overtaxing a number of New Yorkers and undertaxing others. And inability of political will to resolve that.

VOICE: So no plans to change that language on your website?

VOICE: The focus here is to actually ensure a fair property tax system, and the use of that language is an assessment of the neighborhood.

GLENN: Just want it to be fair. Just want it to be fair. Play the next cut. This is Mamdani, by the way, the candidate in New York, that looks like he might win, to become the next mayor of New York. Next cut.

VOICE: You are a self-described democratic socialist. Do you think that billionaires have a right to exist?
(laughter)

VOICE: I don't think that we should have billionaires, because frankly it is so much money, in a moment of such inequality.

And ultimately, what we need more of is equality across our city, and across our state, and across our country.

And I look forward to work with everyone. Including billionaires. To make a city that is fair for all of them.

GLENN: Wow!

That is fantastic.

We shouldn't have billionaires.

Hmm. So how would we get there?

What would be his ultimate goal?

Listen.

VOICE: Do you like capitalism?

VOICE: No. I have many critiques of capitalism.

And I think ultimately, the definition for me, of why I call myself a Democratic Socialist.

Is the words of Dr. King decades ago. He said, call it democracy, or call it democratic socialism.

There must be a better distribution of wealth for all of God's children in this country.

And that's what I'm focused on, is dignity and taking on income inequality. What the purpose is about, about this project, is not simply to raise much consciousness, to win socialism.

And obviously raise class consciousness. We were a part of that. But making sure that we have candidates that both understand that and are willing to put that forward, at every which moment they have.

Every which moment that they are given.

We have to continue to elect more socialists. And we have to ensure that we are unapologetic about our socialism. And there are also other issues that we firmly believe in.

Whether it's BS -- right? Or whether it's the end goal of seizing the means of production, where we don't have the same level --

GLENN: Wait. Can you say that again for me?

Whether it's the end goal of ceasing is the means of production.

Let me ask you the question: Which is more dangerous to our country, and our heritage?

Is it the -- the senator?

That controversial maybe. Says 3 percent of federal land should be transferred back to the states?

Or is it the politician standing at a modem declaring, you know, not in some offhanded gap, that he has a real problem with capitalism. That he wants to tax white neighborhoods. That he wants to get rid of billionaires. And seize the means of production.

Now, for those who studied history. I don't need to tell you why your blood has suddenly run cold. Seize the means of production, that's not economic theory.

That is a revolutionary war cry. It always has been. It's the heart of Lenin, of Marx, of Mao. Of Gulags. Of five-year plans. A food line. Total state control. It is the slogan, whispered in the barracks of all of the camps.

Printed on the walls of the Khmer Rouge Torture cells.

That's not American. That's not a goal any of us should look for. But let's take down Elon Musk.

Let's -- let's take down our FBI.

Let's -- let's take down Mike Lee. Let's take down Tucker Carlson. Let's take down at the scene. Because we don't have enough enemies. Riley rightfully, somebody on this program, asked around on this time, on Friday. Glenn, why did you have Steve Bannon on? This is why I had Steve Bannon. We have enough enemies, don't we?

Can we find people we generally agree with, maybe 80 percent. Even if that 20 percent is massive!

If I'm going to be friends with anybody, for the times I'm going to be friends with.

Then I have to say, I part with you here.

You will have to go on your own way. But when you come back to this, I'm with you.

We are -- we are being -- our college campuses, the floor of our own legislative bodies. As if it were another just regular day in paradise of America.

You know, let me -- we want to talk about highway funding and seizing the means of production.

Wait. What?

Meanwhile, the man who says, we should return a tiny sliver of public land. Land that Washington hoards like a miser. While local communities struggle to pay for schools and police.

Why you can't afford a house!

That's an extremist. A radical. A threat. But this guy, I don't see anybody on the right, really standing up against this guy. Where is the big movement against this guy? It's almost as if, that whole federal lands thing, was orchestrated. And so many of our side played right into it!

That man who says, let the states manage their own forests, their own minerals, their own resources.

Just give us 3 percent of our land, so we can actually have a tax base, so we can build some houses there that people can afford. Let's make sure that the land is controlled by the people, who are closest to that land.

Let them be the stewards of it. Not the bureaucrats 2,000 miles away, who have never set foot in a pine thicket, or a desert mesa.

Which one is more in line with the Constitution? Which one is our bigger enemy here? Which one echoes Jefferson's belief in a government closest to the people? Which upholds the vision of the Founders who feared centralized power, more than foreign armies. Which one is calling for the seizing of the -- of the production?

You know, not all ideas are morally equivalent.

We're not dealing here with difference of opinion on tax rates. Or zoning codes.

One wants to give power back to the states.

And, you know what?

People rose up, and said, I don't like that idea.

So that idea has to be closed and forfeited.

Great! But where are the people standing up saying, seizing the means of production?

This guy wants to take control of your factory. Your farm.

Your business, your labor.

One believes in federalism. The other believes in collectivism. One respects the individual as a moral agent of society. And the other sees the individual as a cog in the great machine of the state that's just going to make utopia. Because they always do!

As you just -- you just can't see it. Because you're behind the barbed wire fence!

When somebody shrugs and says, you know, both sides are really pretty extreme. You know, it's time we say, no, no, no, no.

It's that kind of false equivalence that got us into this mess. That's how the frog stays in the pot as the water slowly boils. You know what, they're both really kind of extreme, no, they're not. No, they're not.

If you believe in America, is a place where rights are granted by God, not government.

Where property is yours. It is sacred!

The fruits of your labor belong to you. That we cannot pretend these are equal threats.

Because they're not. Because one man questions how much land the federal government should own.

The other questions whether you should be allowed to own anything at all!

If the government should not own everything!

Which one is dangerous? Which one snuffs out your rights?

It's not about land. This is all about economics. It's about freedom. And history has already told us where these roads lead.

One road leads to liberty. One road leads us to having a discussion and a debate.

Without calling each other names and killing one another.

The other road doesn't allow debate. And if you try to debate, you're disappeared, or you're killed! One leads in liberty, one ends in chains!

What do you say, we -- we have enough enemies. Why do we need to turn on ourselves? And do you think there's a possibility that the communist, the socialist, the anarchist, the Islamist will all band together, to destabilize the Middle East. Europe, come America to destabilize that, to end the Western world. Do you think there's a chance you're being played?

Because I do. And I refuse to be played. I'm not a moron. And neither are you.

See, here's the thing. This is why, when Ben Shapiro says, facts don't care about your feelings. This is why that's so important.

Because they've hit an emotional spot with you. They've hit a spot of, they're going to take my right away to fish or to hunt.

And that's not what he was doing. But that's what it turned out to be. Our sacred public lands.

It's not what he was talking about.

And if it was, he's not talking about it now.

He wants to make it very, very clear. Exactly what he was talking about.

But see, the idea of going hunting and fishing and hiking. And these glorious places.

We all love that.

I mean, I don't like to actually -- I like to hunt. I don't like to fish.

I don't like to be outside, really.

But I love the lands. I love to be in an air-conditioned car, driving through Yellowstone, going, wow. Look at that. And look at that moron, trying to feed the car, to feed the buffalo.

That's going to be fun to watch.

Why are we so emotional, about that? When it's not really what the argument is about. And it's coming from our friends, when we really should have listened more and had a conversation.

And we're not emotional about someone who says, the end goal is to seize production.

Seize the means of production.

That's Karl Marx!

Why is that one not emotional for us?

Why is it we cannot see the actual enemy?

“General Lee” stuntman REVEALS ALL about the fountain jump

A stuntman took the internet by storm when he jumped a "Dukes of Hazzard" General Lee replica over a fountain in Somerset, Kentucky. The driver, Northeast Ohio Dukes founder Raymond Kohn, joins Glenn Beck to reveal what happened behind the scenes, why he did the jump, and where he wants to jump next (hint: it would involve President Trump)!

Transcript

Below is a rush transcript that may contain errors

GLENN: There was something just amazing that happened over the weekend in Somerset, Kentucky. It was like a Dukes of Hazzard Show.

Thirty-five thousand people gathered together, to line the streets of Somerset, as a very brave driver, who you're going to meet here in a second. Raymond Kohn. Raymond Kohn got into a car. Was an old Dodge Charger?

He jumped over the historic fountain, in the center of the town.

Can we play a little bit of this, if you happen to be watching?

GLENN: I mean, that is just crazy. It just makes me proud to be American, in a very strange sort of way. I don't even know why. It's just so satisfying. The world is on fire, and you're like, yes! We still got it. Raymond Kohn is on with us now. He is the founder and lead stuntman from the northeast Ohio dukes. And they -- they do this kind of stuff all the time. Raymond, welcome to the program.

How are you?

RAYMOND: Thank you for having me, Glenn. I am great.

I feel like a million bucks.

GLENN: Do you really?

When I saw you land, I thought, ow, my back. Ow, my back. It didn't hurt coming down?

RAYMOND: Well, you know what, we are thankful that the legendary stuntman who inspired me to do this. Like the late great Al White Jr. Ted Barba. Corrie Uvey. Jumping John Kid. (all phonetic)

These are the guys who risk everything, back in the '80s on the set of the Dukes of Hazzard, to figure out, how we can do this safely without killing ourselves.

GLENN: I've got to say -- I have to say, I saw a video from the -- from in front of you, as you landed.

And you hit a wall. And you're just tearing through this wall.

And there is a photographer, that is in front. Did you see him, and think, get out of the way, dude! Almost killed him.

RAYMOND: Yeah. So Centerville is our producer. His series that follows us in -- like a global episode, of what we do.

And Mike Cullvich (phonetic) is the -- the -- the executive producer, and that was him there.

And they carefully --

GLENN: Oh, my gosh.

RAYMOND: They know the risks. They know the risks.

He had a little -- just in case, if I go to the left or to the right, that he would be able to squeeze through.

And he did!

So all of the spectators. They were safe.

They were at a safe distance.

You know, we can't do the jump, if we're out there risking people's lives.

And with the help of the summer night crews, the city of Somerset, all the police and fire and EMS, everybody worked together with my team.
I have the best crew in the world.

And, yes, I am the driver that does the jump. And, you know what, we had to build that tarp.
We had to build that tarp, and there was a team of us. And my crew was so great.

They said, look at everything -- we'll get everything done.

Relax. They knew I was nervous.

You know, and they know that my team -- you couldn't ask for a better stunt team.

GLENN: I have so many questions for you.

But let me start here. Before we go too much further away from the town.

Who the hell is the mayor of the city council?

I love these guys.

I can't think of another city in America, that would be like, yeah. We got that historic you fountain, right downtown.

Yeah. Go ahead.

RAYMOND: America is back, baby. I'm telling you. You couldn't have been telling -- from the Dukes of Hazzard. Forty-five years. Forty-seven years after the show ended.

GLENN: Oh.

RAYMOND: I'm telling you, people love -- from all walks of life, people love the Dukes of Hazzard, they love the General Lee.

Listen, if there was -- if there was ever a non-racist TV show for all, it was the Dukes of Hazzard. And that's my main goal.

My pain goal is to get this TV show back on television, that way, we have our children. And our grandchildren. Watching a TV show that has family values good.

GLENN: Okay. So let me -- let me -- one more question on this, before I -- what the hell is wrong we?

When did you decide, this is what I want to do with my life?

RAYMOND: Okay. So I was always a fan. I was born in '77. The show came out in '79. And I loved that big orange car. I loved that car.

GLENN: So great. So great.

RAYMOND: So in 2005, I watched legendary stuntman Corey Spence jump over my roscoe cart. By my police car that I have.

They jumped over it, at the very first General Lee jump site, in Oxford College, in -- in Georgia.

And that's when I got bit by, what I called the stunt bug.

And I was like, I've got to do this. I've got to do -- if I on me do it once, I've got to do it.

And this was my 30th General Lee jump.

For our 30th -- Detroit. We jumped the General Lee downtown Detroit. And then for our 30th, we're jumping over the historic fountain in Somerset, Kentucky.

GLENN: I don't know. This is different. You know, downtown Detroit, you crash into buildings. There's nobody around.

Oh, well.

In Somerset, Kentucky, though. It's just a different thing.

Okay. Let me -- let me -- I think this is amazing.

In looking into you, while the jump is phenomenal. And makes you feel good. What you have gone through in the last few years, is even more amazing.

You had a -- a rare brain surgery, right?

A rare hormonal disorder, that you were like, living another classic TV show, the hulk!

You -- it was changing you, right?

Tell me about this!

JASON: Yeah. So in 2015, I started to feel a lot of pain in my knees, and my elbows.

I started noticing my voice was changing.

My face was changing. And then here comes, hey, Ray. You have to give up blood pressure medicine. You're prediabetic.

You're 335 pounds.

You know, I was always around 220 pounds.

And so nobody -- because -- it's over a long, long, long period of time.

The people that are in my life, every day, they couldn't see the changes.

You know, but the people I haven't seen Ray in a year or two years. You look different, Ray.

You know, and so I went to our local dermatologist, because I started getting these creases in my head. It's bad enough. I'm bald. What are these lines in my head now?

So the dermatologist, she said, let me see your hands. Yeah. You have big hands.

Yeah. Every time I shake somebody's hands. It's like shaking hands with a cinder block.

GLENN: Like banana hands.

JASON: Yeah. My feet went from a size ten to 12.

I had to get a 2X helmet. Because my helmet wouldn't fit.

GLENN: Wait. Wait. Wait pick up wait.

Did you think you were ideas just gaining weight. Or did you know it was something more?

You weren't starving yourself, were you?

RAYMOND: Yeah. Because heavy stunt drivers don't make good stunt drivers. You get hurt a lot easier. It's a lot more weight.

GLENN: Of course.

RAYMOND: All of my loved ones and my crew. It's the jumps are tearing you up.

I'm like, no. No. No. No. It's not the jumps. Don't blame the jumps.

So I said, okay.

So went to the doctor. They said, go give this blood work. You may have something serious going on.

The blood work came back. My growth hormone was 900. 900. Now, normally it was 70 to 270. I'm 47 years old, and I'm still a grown boy!

So that opted for me, to get the -- or, the -- yeah, the MRI of my brain. To scan. And say, I had a 9-millimeter tumor on my 10-millimeter pituitary gland.

And we can have it on my body. And the surgeon, up in the Cleveland Clinic said, Raymond, if we don't get this out of you, it's going to kill you.

And my wife is crying. My daughter is crying.

The first thing that came to my lips was, can I still jump the General Lee after the significant other?

And the doctor said, yes, yes. And I'm like, okay. Let's do does this surgery. Let's get the thing out of my head. And then as soon as I was okay, we went up to the radical speech board in Canada. Joe came up there. We did the first international General Lee jump in front of like 30,000 people up there. And it was awesome.

I'm telling you. I'm living the dream, man. I can't believe this is happening to me.

All because of a TV show, called the Dukes of Hazzard.

GLENN: I have to tell you, I have to put an event together, just because I want to invite you to jump the General Lee over something.

We have to do --

JASON: Glenn, we want. We want to build an American patriot be General Lee.

And we want to put like, you know, 47, 45 on the doors. Put a big old American flag on the roof.

And we will call it The Jump for Trump 2045, and we want to jump in front of the White House. That's what we want to do.

GLENN: That's fantastic.

I'll bring it up to him. If there's any president that will do it. It will be him. He told me a story. He will probably do it on the White House grounds.

RAYMOND: Again, that would be awesome. He would want to do that.

GLENN: He told me a story, he said, you know, about the flagpoles. And he said, you know, he was afraid that all of the -- you know, all of the paperwork and, you know, government everything.

And he wanted to build a ballroom, and put the flagpoles up.

And he went to the guy at the White House, who runs everything at the White House. The architect.

And he said, so what is the paperwork like? And he said, you know, Mr. President, the White House belongs to the president while he's there.

So there's no paperwork. You would have to be the one that would sign all of it. And he's like, this is great.

I bet he could build that jump!

I bet he could build that jump, without any permits.

That is so fantastic.

JASON: In a few weeks. My team --

GLENN: That's fantastic.

JASON: We can build a great American -- they'll give us the panels to make the car, red, white, and blue. Big old American flag theme.

GLENN: That's fantastic.

RAYMOND: We'll call it the jump for Trump. We love Trump! The jump for Trump, and we will rock the White House.

GLENN: It is so great. I will bring it up to him. I will make sure he sees it, okay?

That is fantastic.

But listen, if he takes you up. I have to be there. I have -- you have to get me invited.

RAYMOND: Yeah. Glenn, I would be honored to put a passenger side seat in the car, and you can ride with me.

GLENN: No. No, no, no. No, no.

RAYMOND: Come on!

GLENN: I saw you come down, and my back -- I have a really bad back. And all I could really think of was, ow. Ow. That must have hurt.

RAYMOND: No. Last year, I hit the ramp at 72 miles an hour. I slide 200 at 17 feet. That's the longest General Lee jump in front of a large audience. And I landed a flat on all four wheels.

Had it not been for the safety equipment. That the legendary stuff that came up.

I would have either been killed or worse, paralyzed for the rest of my life.

And it's because of that safety equipment.

I'm not even sitting on the -- I'm painting from the ceiling with bungee cords.

GLENN: Unbelievable. Unbelievable.

I've got to meet you. I've got to meet you, Ray? Just --

RAYMOND: Let's jump in the White House. Let's jump in the White House.

GLENN: Thank you. Raymond. Northeast Ohio. Dukes founder and lead stuntman. You can find the website, north -- northeast Ohio.
Dukes.net.

Ray, we'll talk again. Thank you so much, God bless you, man.

RAYMOND: God bless you. God bless, America.

Introducing 'The Torch'

Tough news week. Tough news month. Always, it seems, another five-alarm fire, or the spotting of arsonists that no one will pay attention to.

The people who watch and support this show—you—are extraordinary.

You don’t just consume information; you act. You don’t just care—you sacrifice. And I’ve seen the receipts. In the last decade alone, you’ve given over a quarter of a billion dollars through Mercury One to help people in crisis.

You didn’t just write checks. You showed up.

Over 45,000 of you volunteered—some of you driving across states, organizing your churches, bringing your kids along—to take part in the largest single volunteer effort completed in one weekend.

That’s not normal. That’s rare. That’s powerful.

You launched The Nazarene Fund, rescuing over 260,000 people from persecution. You funded the largest civilian airlift in history to get Americans and our allies out of Afghanistan.

You’ve changed lives.

You’ve shaped history.

So when people ask me, “Glenn, what more can I do?” my answer is always the same:

First, look at what you have already done. Do you realize how far ahead you are of most Americans? Then start where you are. That feeling inside you—that restlessness, that pull to do something more—isn’t random. It’s a calling. But with everything that is happening in the world, it is hard to keep up as well as keep your chin up.

I get it. I’m tired of the bad news, too.

I’ve spent my life digging through it so you wouldn’t have to. But we must know what is happening and what is ahead. And while next year I’m not walking away from the radio or the stories that matter—in fact, I will be doubling down,

I’ve also told you for nearly two years: I feel something shifting. I feel like I’ve been called to something more. I have only felt this twice in my life—after I sobered up and just before I left Fox.

On January 1st, that “something” begins. I’ve named it The Torch. We started the blaze together; now it is time to take that bit of fire and light the way to a brighter future for our kids.

I wish I could tell you every detail today—but the truth is, some things are still being built, beta-tested, and negotiated. And some things I just can’t tell you until later this year. But here’s what I can tell you:

At its core, The Torch is about education, but not the kind that comes from textbooks or bureaucracies. It’s about self-directed learning rooted in history, liberty, faith, philosophy, and personal responsibility. It’s the kind of education that changes lives—and civilizations.

You’ve heard me say it before: If we want better kids, we have to become better adults. If we want stronger communities, we have to first strengthen ourselves. And if we want truth to survive, we have to fight for it—intelligently, faithfully, daily.

That’s what The Torch is:

A daily connection.

A movement.

A mission.

One part of it will be the culmination of almost a decade of hard work. It will include a new kind of museum—physical and digital—preserving the story of America in ways most museums never could.

You’ll learn through original artifacts, original sources, and real stories from real people who are doing real things. Right now, every summer, we hand-pick around 100 young adults from over 1,000 applications to spend two weeks with us in this kind of immersive learning. Now, for the first time, we’re building a way for anyone, anywhere in the world, in any language, to do the same.

We’re partnering with people of faith, business leaders, educators, innovators—people who know the truth and know how to live it. And they’re coming together not to sell you something, but to empower you.

I’m not asking for anything today—not money, not a sign-up, not a download. Just your attention. Stay connected. Watch what’s coming. I promise you: this is worth your time.

If you want to be one of the first to sign on, join the newsletter at glennbeck.com. But only if you’re serious about discovering your purpose—and lighting a fire that doesn’t go out.

Because we don’t just need new tools or new platforms—we need a renewal of the human spirit. That’s what The Torch is. That is my next mission.

And I hope, when the time comes, you’ll carry it with me.

For future updates on this mission, sign up for my newsletter, and read more background here.