You want smart political talk without the meltdowns?
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I'm Carol Markovich.
And I'm Mary Catherine Hamm.
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Normally is about real conversations.
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And if you want a little bang and yin-yeah, come along.
If the technical definition is two quarters of contraction, you're saying that's not a recession.
That's not the that's not the technical definition.
In terms of the technical definition, it's not a recession.
The technical definition considers a much broader spectrum of data points.
What is exactly the White House's definition of a recession?
Again, we don't we don't def I'm not gonna define it from here.
But I don't think we're going to uh God will think we're recession.
Freedom is back in style.
Welcome to the revolution.
Yeah, we are coming to your centipede song.
Sean Hannity.
More behind the scenes information on breaking news and more bold inspired solutions for America.
This is a special edition of the Sean Hannity Show.
America trapped behind enemy lines.
Day number 348.
All right, day 348.
We're coming up on the one-year mark.
Uh glad you're with us.
Toll-free.
It is 800-941.
Sean, if you want to be a part of the program.
Well, it is everything that we told you it was going to be.
It's I wish it weren't true.
It is true.
Um, you know, obviously the administration was anticipating it, or they wouldn't have spent so much time and effort, etc.
Uh, trying to convince us that the definition of a recession, which is two uh consecutive quarters of negative economic growth or contraction as they call it.
Well, it's now official.
Uh the first quarter, GDP number, minus 1.6% today, minus point nine for quarter number two.
That's the second straight quarterly decline in GDP.
Um, and then we're gonna get into this whole issue Democrats reaching this insane agreement with billions in new taxes and spending.
And by the way, I've got, you know, fake moderate Joe Manchin, who went along with the Schumer deal and got suckered into green new dealism.
I'll tell you what he did.
If you live in West Virginia, Joe Manchin just buckled and caved to the radical climate alarmist, and it's gonna hurt the state of West Virginia.
What had been so admirable up until yesterday was Manchin was standing up for the people of West Virginia and telling the swamp in DC and his own party to go pound sand.
Go jump in a lake.
Anyway, now this now we they want to play word gymnastics with all of this, and the White House communications director saying this is exactly what the American people are asking for.
What inflation?
Record we're asking for record high gas prices.
Are you high?
What are you s are you on crack?
Are you a junkie?
Come on, man.
Come on, man.
Anyway, the GOP is saying this this is gonna lead to double digit inflation.
I don't doubt it.
Um it is political suicide ahead of the midterms.
Every single Republican needs to keep it simple, stupid.
I'm running against so-and-so.
So-and-so, along with Joe Biden, is destroying our economy, is giving us open borders, causing record high gas prices, record high inflation, has now pushed us into a recession, is a mess in foreign policy.
What do you hear what happened when the call readout today with President Chi?
Oh, yeah, President Chi threatening Biden on the call, and he's too weak to stand up for our country.
It is humiliating, it is embarrassing.
I can't even believe that I'm gonna report what you're gonna hear.
Anyway, the Powell yesterday saying he doesn't think the economy's in recession.
Janet Yellen saying the same.
I mean, we don't think it's in a recession.
New York Times called a uh a so-called liberal economist who just admitted he was wrong about inflation the whole time.
Now he goes out there and and even urged Americans to ignore the real definition of a recession.
This is how insane these people are.
And the very people the left, liberals, Democrats claim to have a monopoly, a compassion for, they're destroying poor people in this country and the middle class in this country and people on fixed income in this country and the elderly that are struggling.
Half of half of the elderly population in the country now, you know, can't even make ends meet because of these insane policies, record high inflation, record high gas prices.
Oh, but we have to we get we got leaders that have no economic real world experience.
So what would you expect?
I mean I'll play it later, but Peter Ducey just eviscerated White House press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, by by reading the Biden economic advisors 2008 definition of a recession.
Their own economic advisor said exactly what a recession is.
Economists have a technical definition for a recession.
This is Biden's own economic advisor.
And econom and it is two consecutive quarters of negative growth.
Nobody that knows anything about the economy disagrees with that.
Why we're sparring over that, I don't know.
But now Joe Biden and his insane climate alarmist cult energy dependence uh religion, cultism, has now driven this country's uh into a recession.
Great job, Joe.
Really terrific.
I can't believe how amazing it is.
Uh lower income Americans, look at this, starting to cut back on any restaurant spending.
By the way, I'm not talking about a fancy steakhouse.
I'm talking about Chipotle.
I'm talking about McDonald's.
They have reinforcing data showing lower income Americans, they are cutting back on fast food because they can't afford it.
I uh listen, I remember being at this point, one point in my adult life, and I'm like, I couldn't afford to go to McDonald's.
I was that close to paying my rent every month.
It sucks when you're in that position.
Chipotle singled out diners who aren't less than 50 grand a year.
They're not going to Chipotle as often.
I don't happen to love Chipotle.
I don't know.
My kids love Chipotle.
I'm not a big Chipotle person.
Uh I'd rather get a burger and fries and pizza and any day, although I'm mostly a paleo eater now.
Anyway, so the the chief executive officer of Chipotle said in an interview, and a lot of people love Chipotle, everything is more expensive.
McDonald says lower income customers are shifting to a less expensive menu item, skipping combo meals that includes fries and a drink.
My favorite is a quarter pounder with cheese, French fry and a coke.
I don't I hardly ever have it.
Like next to never now.
Um and I love it.
I'm not gonna lie.
I just am that discipline.
Uh U.S. pending home sales down 20%.
And this is just the beginning.
You know, and you know, in the lead up to all this, I was wondering why they keep releasing all these strategic petroleum reserves because they knew this week was coming.
So they wanted at least have some fake good news, and it's fake in as much as they put a band-aid on the high price of gas.
It's still double what Donald Trump handed off to Joe Biden, but they wanted to put a band-aid.
What if there's a hurricane that God forbid knocks out a refinery in Houston one day?
What are we going to do then when we don't have reserves?
And even given some of the reserves to China, and I got a lot to say about China today.
You know, Biden said this week we're not in a recession.
He said it before the numbers ever came out.
I kept telling you, who do I believe?
Do I believe the Atlanta Fed or do I believe Joe Biden and or and Janet Yellen and Jerome Powell and Deese, this this idiot economic advisor out of political convenience now has changed the definition of what it is to be a recession.
Biden says it's no surprise the economy is slowing down.
It's not because your policies are idiotic and it almost guaranteed it would slow down.
JD Power reporting dismal car sales in July.
We now have repossessions at uh numbers that we haven't seen in years.
And here's the sad thing.
Then we got this idiotic deal with Joe Manchin and Chucky Schumer.
You know, 739 billion dollar tax and spend bill.
And literally, Joe Manchin, let me play Joe Manchin in 2010.
I don't think during a time of recession you mess with any of the taxes or increase any taxes.
Listen.
I I don't think during a time of recession you mess with any of the taxes or increase any taxes.
I can't look the people in West Virginia in the eye and ask them to pay a penny more until I know we're running this government efficient.
Well, we're not running it efficient, Joe.
You just screwed your own constituents in West Virginia.
Because as part of this package, they have a 15% corporate minimum tax.
All right, you think it's great, yeah, let those rich corporations pay more taxes.
That's it.
That's going to be the answer.
Then, well, more money.
No, corporations don't pay taxes.
Everybody needs to get this in their head in their thick skull and understand they just pass the cost on to you.
So that's more money you're going to have to pay.
More inflation for you and your family.
And by the way, gas prices are going back to five dollars a gallon because guess what?
They have what, 20 million more barrels of strategic petroleum reserves they're going to release.
And then once they stop releasing it, OPEC isn't picking up the slack.
Saudi Arabia told Joe to pound sand literally.
Uh we're not going to get it from Venezuela.
That seems to not be working out.
Thankfully, what we're going to now do a deal with Iran.
You know, when Joe said he's going to, we're going to eliminate, you know, our dependence on fossil fuels.
He didn't say eliminate domestic production.
He said eliminate it.
He didn't say that we're going to stop drilling for gas, we're going to stop fracking for gas here and stop drilling for oil here, and stop mining for coal here, and we're going to go to Iran, Russia, Saudi Arabia, OPEC, and Venezuela.
How stupid is this?
You want to end inflation?
Go back to energy independence.
You want to secure the border?
Go back to the Trump border policies.
Oh, you mean the guy that that gets people all riled up and mad because he's out there tweeting?
Good grief.
It's unbelievable.
It's $739 billion tax and spend bill.
Oh, yeah, this is the new Green Deal.
They're going to spend a lot on climate and energy programs, including tax credits for buying electrical vehicles.
Here we go.
We're back to pushing electric.
What about the all of the mining that goes into creating a battery for an electric vehicle?
You know, the cobalt, the manganese, uh, let's see, what else do they got?
Nickel, uh, and all the other minerals that they use these very, very expensive uh powerful equipment that's powered by diesel to extract from Mother Earth and damage the earth in the process and put out all those carbon emissions from all that fuel that they need to get it to build the to build the the battery for the electric car.
Oh, and then how do you charge the electric car?
That's right.
You use electrical power.
Where does most of the electrical power come from?
Because only 12% of our grid comes from, quote, renewables.
And they don't have the technology to change us over, switch us over to renewable energy and to be renewable energy independent, as Pete Buttigudge says.
Remember, more pain, uh, more progress, more benefit, he said this week.
It's unbelievable.
But we don't have the technology.
It's not going to be cheaper.
So why how do you justify begging enemy hostile regimes, Russia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, um, OPEC nations, and Venezuela.
I don't like any of these nations.
They're all hostile to the U.S., they're all a real clear present danger.
And and Joe Manchin capitulates and gives in, they'll pass this through reconciliation, they'll shove it down our throats, and we're stuck.
And the dumbest thing, by the way, even Obama agrees with me about raising taxes in the middle of a recession.
Listen.
You don't raise taxes in a recession.
The last thing you want to do is to raise taxes in the middle of uh a recession.
Well, we're doing the exact thing, even Barack Obama.
I never thought I'd quote him on this program, but here's here's what I did.
Um, anyway, you look at it, and it's so funny.
There's a lot of things you really need to understand about this.
You know, but when you look at now, all right, so they're gonna give a $7,500 in tax credits for a new electric car, $4,000 for used electric cars for the first time if you're buying one.
Okay, but they still cost $20,000 more than a gasoline powered car.
So it's not gonna benefit people.
And the electricity is coming.
88% of it is not coming from renewables.
So that means you're using gas and coal, et cetera, to fire up your electric vehicle.
So how's that good?
And now this is all going to drive and the housing market issue.
I keep telling you it hasn't hit yet.
I've been telling it's we're now beginning to read reports about it.
It's coming.
Anyway, Mansion is it's just unbelievable.
This in the middle of all of this, they passed build back broke, new Green Deal, radical socialism, and Mansion went along with it.
I I it's this is a disaster.
Mark my words, it's gonna get worse.
It's not gonna get better on its own.
These policies are gonna accelerate the problems, and the housing market's next.
New home construction will stop.
Mark my words.
Sale of pre-existing homes is gonna come to a screeching halt.
Nobody's giving up their 2.8, 3.2, 3.8% 30-year fixed rate mortgage in exchange for a 7-8% fixed rate mortgage.
Nope, not gonna happen.
They don't want to pay that money, nor should they.
And then the next thing that's gonna happen is home values will plummet along with your IRAs and your 401ks that have already plummeted.
Great job, Joe.
Socialism's really really doing wonders for the economy.
Giving up energy independence is doing wonders for the economy.
And then they just lie about everything.
I have a whole list of all the lies they tell.
I'll get to that next.
I have never had any conversations ever with Hunter.
Well, we got news today that that's an absolute lie.
Joe Biden met with Hunter's business associates at least 14 times.
We now have a smoking gun email proving Joe Biden was the big guy.
As if he needed another smoking gun after Bob Olinski collecting 10% from Hunter's China deals.
Whoopsie Daisy, they lied there.
They denied that.
Uh Mayorcus last week, we don't have a oh, you know, the border's secure.
They're in denial.
It's a recession.
Denial.
I'll never impose a vaccine mandate.
He denied he'd ever do that.
They did it.
Denied the Taliban is killing people.
They were, and they are, and then called their withdrawal a success.
That's denial.
Denying the administration is limiting oil production.
That's a denial, and it's a lie.
Denying that we have a supply supply chain crisis.
They say it was averted.
Well, it's still going on.
Inflation is transitory.
Denying the truth about that.
Oh, the the inflation is over in December, Joe told us.
We we've now peaked at 7%.
This is it.
We're done.
It's now going to go down.
Didn't happen.
Deny the, you know, the recession's a recession.
Then I everyone predicted a winter COVID surge.
They weren't ready.
They ran out of tests last Christmas.
Never mind the therapeutics that would actually work and help people.
You know, denied the Russian invasion was imminent.
Troops were all over the border.
As long as it's a minor incursion, denying the major gaffes in Europe.
They didn't, they weren't gaffes.
Denied it when that he was alerted about the baby formula shortage.
He was alerted repeatedly months in advance.
Denying that his massive spending package caused inflation, blaming Putin, blaming Fox, blaming Trump.
You know, blaming everybody that, you know, isn't them.
Just lying.
It's another word for it.
Line.
You can't always get what you want, but you can get Sean Hannity online at Hannity.com.
All right, 25 to the top of the hour, 800, 941 Sean, if you want to be a part of the program.
All right, so we are officially in a recession.
There's other news today.
So after funneling millions of dollars into the Biden family syndicate, um, meaning China, uh, President Chi knows, just like Vladimir Putin knows, just like Ukraine knows, they've got Joe over a barrel.
Remember, Libya had a dossier on zero experience hunter.
And I don't even know how much business he did with zero experience hunter, but they had a dossier on zero experience hunter.
And in that dossier, they knew he was A crack addict.
They knew he had a proclivity with you know prostitutes, hired prostitutes.
Now think about this.
If you think that Don Jr., Eric Trump, Ivanka Trump, if they lied on a gun application, uh, and that gun gets thrown in a in a on a dumpster somewhere, and thankfully a good Samaritan finds it and hands it over to the police.
It was near a school and it didn't end up in the hands of some kid, and a disaster could have been unfolding after that.
You think they would have gotten away with a slap on the wrist or not charged at all?
Because apparently Delaware prosecutors thought that Hunter was a victim in this.
I mean, you know, it's there's such a double standard.
And then by the way, part of the mansion build back broke deal includes hiring more IRS agents.
You know, I I'll tell you right now, you're just what that means for most of you is you're now gonna get the Hannity treatment.
What do you mean by that, Hannity?
A Hannity treatment.
Meaning every year they pull my file.
So to in the preparation to get every single I dotted T-cross penny paid.
Because I'm not taking chances with a government that is so hostile to all conservatives.
Liberals, oh, it's an anonymous mistake.
A conservative, you were short $10 on your tax form.
Therefore, we're gonna put you in jail for 10 years.
So I tell everybody pay your taxes, don't mess around with it.
Pay it, pay it, pay it.
My accountants call me.
What do you want me to do?
This is a legal deduction.
You know, they might challenge it, but it's I'm pay it.
That's what I say, constantly.
So I go through a process where I've got a financial team that does my taxes, and then it goes to my lawyer, and then my lawyer brings in his accountants to go over the work of the other accounting firm, and it gets done twice before it ever gets sent in.
And of course, every penny is paid.
And by the way, a lot of it's taken out anyway, so it doesn't matter.
Um, but anyway, so President Chi calls today.
They have this two-hour phone call.
Now, I would argue that what happened in Ukraine is not unique.
In Ukraine, we had Vice President Joe Biden.
He leveraged one billion of your taxpayer dollars, and he said to Ukraine, either you fire that prosecutor over there, his name is Shokin, Viktor Shokit, I believe.
You fire Shokin, or you're not getting a billion dollars.
He tells the story, brags about it.
And um, he goes, Oh, you got six hours until I leave.
Gotta fire the prosecutor.
You're not getting the billion.
You don't believe me, call Obama.
He'll support me.
Okay, so son of a bee, he says.
They fired the guy.
Why would a vice president withhold a billion dollars to fire some stupid prosecutor in Ukraine?
Well, now we know the answer.
Because the prosecutor was investigating Hunter.
And Hunter then goes on, good morning, America, and he's asked simple questions.
Do you have any experience in energy?
No.
Oil, no.
Gas, no.
Ukraine, no.
Huh.
Well, why do you think they paid you millions of dollars?
I don't, I don't know.
I really don't.
Do you think maybe it's because your dad was the vice president in charge of Ukrainian policy?
Probably.
Probably that's it.
Probably a lot of things wouldn't happen in my life.
What experience did you have?
Well, I was on the board of Amtrak.
What does Amtrak have to do with energy or Ukraine?
Nothing.
But Joe Biden, that's the real quid pro quo.
But because your media is so corrupt, because our Department of Justice is so corrupt, because our FBI, you know, the leadership is so corrupt.
We have whistleblowers out this week trying to tell people that they're protecting Hunter Biden and they're purposely labeling uh evidence as Russian disinformation to cover for Hunter.
Think that would ever happen to a Trump?
This country's a mess.
If you don't have equal justice under the law, an equal application of our laws, and you politicize the Justice Department the way we have.
You know, you see, it's all January 6th, but forget about the 574 riots.
They killed dozens of Americans, injured thousands of cops, and caused billions of property damage.
Ignore the vice president, then candidate for vice president Kamala Harris, they're not gonna stop.
She's talking about the rioting in the summer of 2020.
They're not gonna stop before the election, they're not gonna stop after the election.
Take note, she said.
Beware, she said.
They're not gonna stop.
They shouldn't stop.
We're not gonna stop.
Take note, beware.
And then she tweets out the where people can donate to a bail fund to bail out the rioters.
To bail out the people arrested.
It's insane.
Why isn't that causing insurrection in a city?
See how you see how politics is now.
You know, whatever happened to the people that lied.
Can you imagine what would happen to any of you listening to my voice right now if you lied to a judge?
I'd never lie to a judge.
You never lie when you're under oath.
If you don't know the answer, honestly, you don't know the answer.
You don't know the answer.
But you don't lie.
If you lie, it's called perjury.
If you're a conservative, and and they say or they they actually set perjury traps for conservatives.
We've seen that before.
But you just tell the truth under oath.
You have to.
That's my advice.
Tell the truth.
You know, there's certain people in life you should never lie.
You never lie to your minister.
That's not gonna do you any good.
You shouldn't lie to your doctor.
No, I don't have chefs.
No, not at all.
That's not a good idea.
You can't if you lie to your lawyer, your liar lawyer can't do his job and or her job and defend you.
Shouldn't lie to your significant other.
You know, she's better off telling the truth.
You want smart political talk without the meltdowns?
We got you.
Now I'm Carol Markovich, and I'm Mary Catherine Hamm.
We've been around the block in media, and we're doing things differently.
Normally is about real conversations, thoughtful, try to be funny, grounded, and no panic.
We'll keep you informed and entertained without ruining your day.
Join us every Tuesday and Thursday, normally on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.