The Jason Stapleton Program

Well, it depends on who you ask.

I'm going to walk through the highlights of the memo with you but what I found most interesting is the way the media framed the release of the memo before they knew what was in it.

I've got clips from both Sean Hannity and Joe Scarborough talking about what's in a memo they haven't yet seen. Both making wild predictions about what it says and what implications it will have politically for both parties.

The days of pandering are over. People are losing trust in the media and those in talk radio because none of them are giving you the truth. I will.

Enjoy your weekend,

Jason

I've got two great stories for you today. The first is a breakdown of Maxine Waters recent comments about both President Trump and Ben Carson.

I'm fond of calling Maxine the dumbest person in Washington not simply because I disagree with her politics (which I do) but because I genuinely believe she is a person of low intelligence.

The scariest thing to me is the fact that she continues to get reelected in the face of overwhelming evidence that she doesn't know a thing about how the real world works.

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The second story is a great case study in the free market. It involves Starbucks and a small Mom and Pop Asian fusion restaurant. I'll explain the details on today's show.

Enjoy!

Jason

If you missed Trumps SOTU address last night, fear not. You missed nothing. In addition to being one of the longest states of the unions in history, the president said surprisingly little.

I would imagine most Americans lost interest after the first hour of Trump explaining all the great things he's done for the nation, but I'll throw out a couple of highlights today so that you don't feel left out.

I think these types of events are pointless. I wouldn't have watched it myself except for the fact that I know most of YOU didn't watch it and somebody needs to be keeping up with this stuff. :-)

The SOTU address is a sales pitch. It always is. This one was no different.

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We've been talking about what's driving the growth in America these last few years, and as you know, it's largely built on a central bank debt-fueled heroin addiction.

Further evidence of this came from the Treasury Department who plans to issue close to a trillion dollars of new debt this year. Not surprising given the fact that Trumps tax cut came with an additional 1.4 trillion in new unfunded expenses. You can't get something for nothing.

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Finally, I want to hit on something we discussed a bit yesterday, and it's an update on the Venezuela crisis. It turns out the military is starting to turn on Maduro. The Socialist utopia is coming to an end.

Enjoy!

Jason

The Universal basic income is a popular idea these days, and the truth is IF you could get rid of the entire welfare system and replace it with a UBI I'd probably get behind it. Not because I want a welfare state but simply because it would take power away from the state by dramatically reducing the size and control the government had over people's lives.

Stockton is testing the UBI on a few dozen of its citizens, but it's not going to get the result it wants because it's not running a true test.

Stockton plans to give a few dozen of its citizens $500, no strings attached. How is that a basic income? Nobody can live on $500 a month, in fact, 500 bucks aren't going to make any real difference in anyone's lives.

If you want a real test give them $2,000 and see what happens. Se how many people quit their minimum wage job and start living off the state.

See how many young people decided not to get that entry level job where they learn the skills that will serve them throughout their working lives.

See how many people lose their sense of self-worth as resign themselves to an unfulfilling life.

The UBI is not a good idea. Like most government programs it will not have the desired effect of providing security. It will, however, make more people dependent on the government for its basic needs and I think that is perhaps the ultimate goal.

Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, Yemen, Ukraine, Somolia....

These are but a few of the places we are currently fighting outright wars or proxy wars. There are dozens of other countries where we have troops, equipment or money flowing in and out to exert influence and determine outcomes.

America has truly achieved Empire status. Seeking to affect or outright control every decision or outcome in the world today.

Like all great empires, we stretch ourselves too thin, overtax our people, neglect the principles and ideas that made us great and take on debt at a rate far exceeding our ability to pay.

It's not too late. We are not too far gone, but if we want to avoid the future that lays before us we MUST return to those ideas that made us the greatest nation on earth.

Limited Government, Peace, Tolerance and Free Markets.

Jason