Don't Take the Bait - How Libs Trap Conservatives in Pointless Arguments episode artwork

EPISODE · Jan 15, 2026 · 1H 9M

Don't Take the Bait - How Libs Trap Conservatives in Pointless Arguments

from Ruthless Podcast · host Josh Holmes, Comfortably Smug, Michael Duncan and John Ashbrook

🎙️ Why does it feel like we’re bouncing from one high-stakes fight to the next without ever forcing the real public debate? Because liberals and the media use this as a tactic. The fellas explain how narratives and process drama help the bigger questions get ignored: like why federal law enforcement is in Minneapolis in the first place, and what elected leaders did to set the whole mess in motion. ⚡️ Then, we get into the sanctuary city pressure campaign and the Feb 1 payment cutoff that Trump has planned. Then, how the loudest voices on the left treat “oppose Trump” as a full personality. How do libs expect that if laws are on the books, that it won’t be enforced? We explain how these fights get reframed into “Gestapo” language, and why that reframing is the point. 👑 It’s Thursday, so we play our signature game: King of the Hill. It’s a truly deranged week featuring Joe Scarborough and champion Steve Schmidt. ️ 🐘 Montana AG Austin Knudsen on how foreign influence and dark money can end up behind pressure campaigns and litigation. He walks us through how funding trails get buried through layers of orgs and intermediaries. Knudsen also explained how climate lawsuits can be used to choke an energy state one permit at a time. Then: China-linked consumer platforms, Second Amendment fights, and what it takes to keep states from getting steamrolled by activist-law tactics. 00:00 - Why the real debate gets dodged 02:02 - Rapid-fire fights and the missing public case 05:33 - Minnesota confrontation narrative shifts 07:06 - Process arguments vs the underlying problem 09:52 - “Gestapo” framing and the sanctuary-state contrast 13:51 - Trump announces Feb 1 sanctuary-city payment cutoff 16:03 - Progressive push to block immigration enforcement funding 18:56 - Lawsuits to block federal enforcement inside states 22:13 - Trump and Eric Adams have deuling f-bombs 25:42 - The media fever dream 31:42 - King of the Hill: Joe Scarborough vs champion Steve Schmidt 37:41 - Montana AG Austin Knudsen joins the Progrum Our Sponsors: ➢The Durbin / Marshall credit Card bill would benefit corporate mega stores. Tell Congress to https://guardyourcard.com/ ➢Tell your lawmaker to put parents first. NetChoice is dedicated to making the Internet safe for free expression and free enterprise: http://netchoice.org/keepappstoressafe ➢Unleash American energy to be bigger and better than ever before, because when America builds, America wins. https://permittingreformnow.org/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

🎙️ Why does it feel like we’re bouncing from one high-stakes fight to the next without ever forcing the real public debate? Because liberals and the media use this as a tactic. The fellas explain how narratives and process drama help the bigger questions get ignored: like why federal law enforcement is in Minneapolis in the first place, and what elected leaders did to set the whole mess in motion. ⚡️ Then, we get into the sanctuary city pressure campaign and the Feb 1 payment cutoff that Trump has planned. Then, how the loudest voices on the left treat “oppose Trump” as a full personality. How do libs expect that if laws are on the books, that it won’t be enforced? We explain how these fights get reframed into “Gestapo” language, and why that reframing is the point. 👑 It’s Thursday, so we play our signature game: King of the Hill. It’s a truly deranged week featuring Joe Scarborough and champion Steve Schmidt. ️ 🐘 Montana AG Austin Knudsen on how foreign influence and dark money can end up behind pressure campaigns and litigation. He walks us through how funding trails get buried through layers of orgs and intermediaries. Knudsen also explained how climate lawsuits can be used to choke an energy state one permit at a time. Then: China-linked consumer platforms, Second Amendment fights, and what it takes to keep states from getting steamrolled by activist-law tactics. 00:00 - Why the real debate gets dodged 02:02 - Rapid-fire fights and the missing public case 05:33 - Minnesota confrontation narrative shifts 07:06 - Process arguments vs the underlying problem 09:52 - “Gestapo” framing and the sanctuary-state contrast 13:51 - Trump announces Feb 1 sanctuary-city payment cutoff 16:03 - Progressive push to block immigration enforcement funding 18:56 - Lawsuits to block federal enforcement inside states 22:13 - Trump and Eric Adams have deuling f-bombs 25:42 - The media fever dream 31:42 - King of the Hill: Joe Scarborough vs champion Steve Schmidt 37:41 - Montana AG Austin Knudsen joins the Progrum Our Sponsors: ➢The Durbin / Marshall credit Card bill would benefit corporate mega stores. Tell Congress to https://guardyourcard.com/ ➢Tell your lawmaker to put parents first. NetChoice is dedicated to making the Internet safe for free expression and free enterprise: http://netchoice.org/keepappstoressafe ➢Unleash American energy to be bigger and better than ever before, because when America builds, America wins. https://permittingreformnow.org/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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Don't Take the Bait - How Libs Trap Conservatives in Pointless Arguments

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This episode was published on January 15, 2026.

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🎙️ Why does it feel like we’re bouncing from one high-stakes fight to the next without ever forcing the real public debate? Because liberals and the media use this as a tactic. The fellas explain how narratives and process drama help the bigger...

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