The Jason Stapleton Program

I'm really getting tired of Trump's claims that we're getting "beat" by China or that we're "losing" the trade war with China is "taking our jobs". It's hard for me to expect everyone to know enough about international trade to reject it on their own but I expected there would be enough people in America today that had enough common sense to at least ask some questions. Alas, I was wrong. Trump was out again saying he doesn't care if he starts a trade war with China. He called those who oppose his foolish trade policies "dummies.". This is typical Donald Trump but today I'm going to take DT to school and give him, and all of his drone followers, an education in how an economy works. I don't expect them to get it but you will. And you can take the fight to them with a knowledge trade few possess. Then we're going to discuss some earth-shattering news in the Libertarian community. Austin Petersen was on Glenn Becks show today and by the time, it was done Glenn was singing his praises. Glenn continues to move toward the libertarian camp. It's a slow move, but everyone comes to the truth in their own time. I'm going to play some clips from his discussion about Petersen and also some insights he had about Libertarians that I think we can learn from. Don't forget to subscribe and tell a friend!

The Daily Caller is reporting that if Libertarian Party candidate Gary Johnson wins the nomination to represent the party this year, he will have the backing of Billionaire Charle Koch. Are the rumors true? I have no idea, but I know it could have a major impact on the delegates heading to Florida later this month to cast their votes. Gary has been making the rounds on some great podcasts recently. I've listened to his appearance on both Joe Rogan and Adam Carolla, and I'll give me my thoughts on his performance on today's show. From there we'll move to Austin Petersen's recent appearance on the Steve Deace show. Austin, generally confident and confrontational was put on his heels when Deace challenged him on his abortion position. The pundits have not been kind to Austin and frankly it did not go well, but this is the cold reality of running for president. There is no shortage of people ready to armchair quarterback your performance after the fact. From there we'll talk a little about personal finance. It turns out the bulk of Americans would have trouble coming up with $1,000 to pay for an unexpected bill. What I found most shocking was that it doesn't matter how much you make. This proves most Americans are not planning for the future but living for today. It's a dangerous way to live and I hope my audience is planning for a very uncertain future.

Bernie Sanders has built up quite a band of misfits, many of whom are not causing problems for the mainstream Democratic party. The fury of Bernie supporters was on full display at this years Nevada Convention where the police were called after a group of Sanders fans caused a major incident, and the threat of violence irrupted. These are the same types of protesters who have been crashing Trump rallies over the last few months. It's all those, peaceful, tolerant, caring progressive liberals. It's a shame the media won't show them for the hypocrites they are. From there we're going to move to some comments from Trump. He had the audacity to say (out loud, in an interview) that America would never default on its debt since it could just "print the money." It's funny how telling the truth will get you HUUUGE amounts of media attention these days. Trump also went on to correctly state that if the cost of our debt rose two or three percentage points, "We would not have a country." The truth hurts and it doesn't matter whether it's coming from Ron Paul or Donald Trump. We had better pay attention. The time is coming when we'll pay for the fact that we've been living beyond our means. I just hope you are all prepared.

I got a lot of great feedback from the Brexit movie I told everyone about yesterday. My inbox was flooded with those of you in Europe who echoed the key points of the film. What Darren and I found most compelling was how similar the EU is to our own seemingly endless list of government agency whose decisions carry the weight of law. Is it any wonder we've seen a rise in the ranks of militia groups across the United States? Some would like to discount them as racist ani-government hillbillies who are angry that Obama is black and Mexicans are "stealing their jobs". What an ignorant and small minded view. In reality, these militias are a logical reaction to a government that violates the constitution and threatens Americans liberty on nearly a daily basis. If we want to see people lay down their guns and return the a thriving economy, if we want a free nation and limited government, if we want the money out of politics then we must reduce the size and power of government. It is the only way. If not I fear for the future of my nation and the consequences that lay in store for my children.

If you've been watching the news recently, you've not doubt seen the long lines of travelers waiting hours to pass through TSA checkpoints. According to a recent article, more than 4,000 people have missed flights due to delays caused by the TSA. So why does TSA do such a poor job at its primary function? Simply put, because it's government. It turns out the TSA his a top-heavy, bureaucratic, administrative nightmare. The do everything poorly. The recruit poorly, they train poorly, and they perform poorly. And what do we get for our long lines and humorless security providers? Not much it turns out. When the TSA did its own internal audit recently over 97% of the contraband made it through TSA screenings. Translation? The TSA sucks at its primary mission which is to search for harmful or dangerous materials before you get on a plane. The TSA should be privatized, and those companies should be given unlimited freedom to provide real security. Those companies should be judged based on their performance, and failure to maintain a high standard should result in the loss of the contract. Basically, we need the exact opposite of what we have now.

Yes, you read that right. Jason is going to whip out his bedazzler on the show today and give you all a show. We're also going to talk about some really important stuff starting with the fight for $15. We've been discussing the issue of minimum wage even before the fight for $15 became a thing, and I've tried to explain what was going to happen and then point it out to you as it does. It gives you the chance to understand the economic principles at work and then see it play out in real time. Today we find out that Wendy's will be implementing kiosks in their 6,000 stores nationwide to combat the rising cost of labor. This decision, they say, is a direct result of the minimum wage hikes happening across the country. The $15/hr crowd told you this could never happen. They said it was all scare tactics. Well, it turns out they don't understand PR any better than they do economics. What is most frustrating is the people who will be hurt are the ones most in need of training and skills so they can move up in the workforce. I've also got a couple of good stories about government spending and the Fed. I always get a chuckle when Yellen speaks. Check out today's show and don't forget to share it with a friend!

There's a new book coming out written by a former congressman and it is juicy. It would appear this congressman pulls no punches on both his colleagues in the American people. Honestly, I can't wait to read it. Then we're going to move to an interesting video of a few cops who let their emotion get away with them. I'll let you see the result for yourself. Some people will tell me that I need to let all the facts emerge before passing judgment but in this case, there's no need. It's clear these officers went to work on a man who was passively surrendering. It's a clear abuse of force, and I would image some cops are going to finding work as truck drivers soon. Finally, we'll talk about an article writing at theweek.com breaking down this election season and why libertarians have not played a bigger role. I still think there's time, but the authors got a lot right. It's a show of many topics today. Don't forget to share it with your friends. Jason

We just keep digging ourselves deeper and deeper into this dark hole of social justice. Now we've got universities paying "fat advocates" to teach future nutritionists not to shame their clients by telling them to lose weight. "Lose hate; not weight" is the slogan of the day. Apparently if you're a thin person in America today, you're oppressing and shaming the fat. This is shocking to me since nearly 70% of the U.S. population is overweight. It would seem to me that skinny people like me are an oppressed minority. But what do I know? We're also going to talk about the Facebook scandal. Congress has now gotten involved. Apparently they think they have a responsibility to protect Facebook users from a bias "trending news" section on the site. I can't believe I pay these guys to do this kind of stuff. We've got to find a solution to this madness or we risk losing reality altogether. I hope we find a way.

I know that title is going to ruffle some feathers, but I'm dead serious. We hear from Johnny and Suzie do-gooder all the time telling us how we shouldn't support companies or countries that use child labor. But I want to take some time on today's show and demonstrate how child labor, in combination with free market principles and the rule of law can lift people out of poverty. I'll admit it's hard for me to think about my young girls being sent off at the age of 7 or 8 to a factory to make t-shirts. What kind of monster would do such at thing? I can hear you right now saying something like "We're lucky here in America because we have laws that prevent that kind of child abuse. " But is it the law that keeps kids out of sweatshops in America? Certainly laws can act as a deterrent to crime but if you were starving to death would a child labor law keep you from putting your son or daughter to work helping feed the family? In fact, the "law" doesn't even prevent child labor today. When I was growing up, we lived on a farm, and I was regularly required to help move irrigation pipe, change water and drive the tractor at harvest season. It was part of what you did because the family needed help to get the work done. Countries that utilize child labor do so because they are economically depressed to the point that children would starve if they did not work. To suggest that you are helping a child in Cambodia by not buying products made there out of a sense of compassion for the children working in the factories is nothing short of madness. Without those jobs, those children would likely be out on the street. Many would starve to death or be forced into work in the industries like the sex trade. Only after incomes rise beyond a certain point does it become socially unacceptable to send children to work. What makes it possible to have child labor laws is a combination of free markets, property rights and the rule of law allowing for technology and productivity increases that make it unnecessary for children to be in the labor force.

Trump recently release his seven-point health care overhaul plan and for anyone looking for a conservative, common sense approach to revamping the health care system it's going to bring a smile to your face. I run through all seven on the show today. Give it a listen. But the devil is in the details. Not the details of how he gets the plan through Congress, I'm talking about the pesky details surrounding his inability to maintain a consistent message. It was not that long ago that Trump gave us his tax plan. A wonderful conservative document similar to the health care plan he just laid out. In it, he boasted of tax cuts for all, even the highest earners. Now he's singing a different tune. And what about the minimum wage? In the debates, he told us he thought the minimum wage should stay where it is, but now he's saying it may need to go up. So what gives? Who is the real Donald Trump? What does he honestly believe. I think Trump himself may not know. What I am convinced of is Trump's health care plan is not worth the paper it's written on. And that's too bad. It truly was a plan worth getting behind.

I had planned to touch on the economy today and then shift to some stories on regulation since we've been targeting that aspect of government overreach in the last week. Then Obama was kind enough to give me a little gift. Given the numbers were so bad, Obama felt it was necessary to come out and calm the waters. What he had to say gave me all the material I needed for a full episode. I'm not going to say anything more. Just watch the episode and share it with a friend! Jason

I've dedicated this show to discussing the real problem with government today and the solutions to fix it. The objections to third party voting have already started and as I anticipated it goes something like this; "A vote for a third party is a vote for Hillary." This implies that on some level that' I'm to blame for Hillary being elected if I vote third party. What I would say is, it doesn't matter who get's elected. They're both basically the same person. And if we don't elect someone who cares about liberty then nothing is going to change. The real problem with government is their ever-expanding reach. This is not an issue of Presidents doing too much or too little. It has to do with unelected bureaucrats in numberless agencies taking on the power to write law and punish offenders. On the show today, we'll look at several such cases appearing in the headlines just this morning. It illustrates the real problem is not a lack of leadership but a total disregard for the constitution and individual liberty.

What is the message to the millions of Cruz supporters? To the constitutional conservative who feels their voice is no longer represented in politics today. Many of you feel that the Republican party no longer represents your values and ideals. I've felt that way for many years. Gone are the old ideas of limited government, states rights, individual liberty and free markets. The majority of Republicans serving in office today are barely distinguishable from liberal progressives. Oh sure, we get the occasional lip service paid when there's an election. They talk about lower taxes, reducing the debt, returning to constitutional government and clawing back the regulatory spiderweb that's keeping our economy is a perpetual malaise but what do we really get? Time and again we've seen Republicans cower and fold when it comes time to make good on their promises. Whether we're talking about the debt ceiling being raised, adding anther trillion to our debt in the last six months or the new "conservative" budget passed by a Republican Congress that boasted a half a trillion dollar deficit, the results never match the rhetoric. The Republican party is no longer the party of constitutional, limited government. They are no longer the party of liberty. With Cruz out there is little to stop Trump from being the party's nominee. With his assertion marks a definitive shift in the party of Lincoln. The Republican party will now take on the face of a Nationalist and populist movement. That is what Trump stands for. In the coming months, you're going to be given a false choice. You're going to be told for any number of reasons that you must vote Trump. You're going to see political insiders and media giants who once stood shoulder to shoulder with you against Trump now modify their message to make it acceptable for you (and them) to support a man who does not hold your values or your ideals sacred. They will do this because, at their core, it's about party not principle. They will give you the impression that you can choose left or right, but you much choose one or the other. This is the false choice. There is a third way. A way for you to maintain your principles and vote your conscience. A way for you to send a message to those who tell you to fall in line. As I said, I came to the realization that the Republican party didn't represent me years ago. And I went looking for a political philosophy that did. And I found it. Libertarians believe, at their core in 5 basic principles. They are Limited Government, Individualism, Peace, Tolerance and Free Markets. Libertarians believe you have the right to be left alone. That government should be limited to protecting life liberty and property and should larger than is necessary to perform those functions. Come November you're going to walk into a voting booth and on the ballot there is going to be a third choice. The libertarian choice. What I would ask is, if you feel like you're voice is no longer represented, if you feel like a man or woman without a country, please investigate the third option. Don't sit at home on election day in an attempt to punish Republicans. Stand up and be counted. Let them know that you no longer stand with the party of National Populism. Tell them you still love liberty, and you'll fight to keep it.

Cruz is mounting his last stand against Donald Trump in Indiana tonight. They're mixed signals, but all signs are leaning toward another Trump victory. Even if Cruz manages a victory, it will likely be a narrow one. What I've seen from the Cruz campaign over the last several weeks is desperation. They know it's close to being over. A defeat tonight might not technically mean the end of the campaign but in the eyes of the media and the voter, he's finished. From there we move to Puerto Rico where the government just defaulted on 400 million in debt. They've got another 70 billion behind that, and it's becoming evident that they don't have the ability to pay a penny of it back. What does this mean for you? That's going to be up to Congress. Right now they're trying to find a way to allow legally PR to default on the debt and save themselves from the uncomfortable position of having to pay for a bailout. It's a mess out there. Have a laugh where you can.

I'm going to warn you that this is going to be a difficult episode for those of you with delicate sensibilities. I've been frustrated over the last few weeks because I've realized that most of the blowback I get from my positions come not from progressives or conservatives but rather from libertarians. That's somewhat disconcerting since I'm far more critical of both the left and the right, but it seems I just can't get away from the thin skinned libertarian who demands I conform to his narrow view of right and wrong. What attracted me most to libertarianism was the "live and let live" philosophy that bedrock much of the work from great classical liberal and libertarian minds. What I have found after expressing my views openly is a culture of open hostility and in many cases narrowmindedness. Maybe this is a venting day for me. Maybe I'll feel differently tomorrow, but when I started this show, I never imagined I'd be defending myself not from the progressives on the left of the neocons on the right but the libertarians who claim to want the same things I do.