Ep. 708 - Eat The Rich!

Episode Summary

Executive Summary: Ben Shapiro skewers Cory Booker’s presidential launch as performative, dishonest, and emblematic of Democratic “faux sincerity,” then broadens into attacks on left-wing radicalism on abortion, taxation, health care, and climate policy. He argues Democrats are increasingly pushing extreme policies while the media reframes Republican criticism as mere “pouncing,” and closes with mailbag advice and a defense of free markets, responsibility, and opposition to identity politics.

Main Topics: Cory Booker’s presidential launch and persona (Priority: 5/5): Shapiro mocks Booker’s announcement video as overproduced, theatrical, and hypocritical, arguing Booker’s brand of bipartisan reform collapsed into partisan progressive politics. Democratic radicalization and media framing (Priority: 5/5): He argues Democrats are advancing extreme positions on taxes, health care, and abortion, while mainstream media portray Republican criticism as unfair opportunism rather than substantive response. Ilhan Omar, taxes, and anti-Israel rhetoric (Priority: 5/5): Shapiro condemns Omar’s claims about Israel and her support for 70-90% tax rates on the wealthy, presenting both as evidence of far-left extremism. Climate policy and China’s emissions (Priority: 4/5): He criticizes Green New Deal-style rhetoric as ideologically convenient and points to Chinese coal methane increases as proof that international climate agreements are not being honored. Free markets, wages, and AOC’s pay arguments (Priority: 4/5): Shapiro attacks Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s view that workers should be paid what they are ‘worth’ rather than what the market will bear, defending market pricing and wage formation. Mailbag: responsibility, intersectionality, psychics, health care, adultery (Priority: 3/5): He answers listener questions with advice about maturity, careers, discrimination theory, skepticism about psychics, health insurance markets, and marriage/adultery.

Key Arguments: Cory Booker’s campaign is presented as an act; Shapiro says Booker’s video is all style, no substance, and that his record in Newark and the Senate shows failure upward rather than leadership. Booker once branded himself bipartisan, but Democratic politics has moved left, leaving no room for the kind of centrist image he originally cultivated. Democrats are normalizing radical positions—such as Medicare for All, late-term abortion, and punitive tax rates—while the press characterizes GOP criticism as opportunistic instead of evidence-based. Ilhan Omar’s comments on Israel and taxes are cited as proof that the Democratic left is comfortable with anti-Israel rhetoric and confiscatory taxation. Climate rhetoric from Democrats is treated as selective and inconsistent because China, not the U.S., is the largest source of emissions growth and continues violating promised reductions. AOC’s claim that employers should pay workers what they are ‘worth’ ignores how prices and wages are formed by supply, demand, and mutual agreement. Shapiro argues identity politics and intersectionality become harmful when they replace individual facts with assumptions based on group membership. The media’s repeated ‘Republicans pounce’ framing obscures the substantive content of Democratic proposals and shields Democrats from criticism. Markets, not political intuition, determine the value of labor and goods; attempts to centralize that judgment lead to distortion and inefficiency. Responsibility—marriage, career risk-taking, and family obligations—is presented as a route to maturity and better decision-making.

Data Points: Cory Booker Newark tenure length: 6 years - Shapiro cites a New York Times characterization of Newark as still an emblem of poverty six years into Booker’s mayoralty. Newark school reform gift: $100 million initial gift, raised to $200 million - Booker, Christie, Zuckerberg, and others announced major Newark public school reform funding in 2010. Booker’s law firm job duration: 10 months - He left a transactional law firm after being dissatisfied with the work and limited billables. Tax proposal discussed by Ilhan Omar: 70% to 90% - Shapiro cites Omar endorsing tax rates as high as 80–90% on very high earners. Top 1% threshold referenced: about $400,000 per year as a couple - Shapiro corrects what he says is a common misunderstanding about who counts as the 1%. Public support for Medicare for All if taxes rise: 26% - He cites polling that drops support when voters are told Medicare for All would raise taxes. Support for banning all semi-automatic weapons: 40% - Used to argue that some Democratic gun proposals are outside the mainstream. Opposition to late-term abortion at dilation: 81% oppose - He cites polling to argue late-term abortion is not broadly popular. U.S. job growth in January: 304,000 jobs - Mentioned to temper economic pessimism. Health care spending over the next decade: $60 trillion total; about $28 trillion public and $32 trillion private - Used to argue much U.S. health care spending is private and voluntary. China methane emissions increase: 1.2 million tons per year - Cited from a New York Times report on coal mine methane emissions despite Chinese pledges. China methane reduction target: 6.2 million tons by 2015 - The government’s required reduction goal under its 2010 regulations. Booker mayoral campaign funding example: $200 million - Shapiro points to Newark school funding as one of Booker’s marquee achievements while criticizing outcomes.

Pivotal Quotes: "This is my I am Spartacus moment" — Ben Shapiro: Used to mock Cory Booker’s self-conscious Kavanaugh-hearing theatrics and public posturing. "It’s a matter of do we have the collective will" — Cory Booker: From Booker’s campaign launch video, which Shapiro says is overly staged and dramatic. "We can build a country where no one is forgotten. No one is left behind." — Cory Booker: A central line from Booker’s presidential launch video, played for critique as empty rhetoric.

Implications: The episode frames Democrats as increasingly captive to progressive rhetoric, while media bias blunts accountability. Listeners are urged to view policy claims skeptically, especially on taxes, abortion, climate, and health care, and to prioritize markets and individual responsibility.