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Trump Says He’ll Meet Xi Twice More This Year as Summit Wraps · Balance of Power

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  Speaker 5: Thank you for spending part of your Friday with us.
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  Speaker 5: As we watch the summit come to a close here
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  Speaker 5: in Washington, D.C., it has been something with President Xi
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  Speaker 5: in town for a couple of days. He arrived Wednesday evening,
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  Speaker 5: and the final act was a visit to the National
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  Speaker 5: Archives today. He actually went to visit the archives, including
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  Speaker 5: the U.S. Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, yes, the Bill
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  Speaker 5: of Rights. He walked through the hall with President Trump
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  Speaker 5: to bring this to a close. Having begun the day
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  Speaker 5: at the White House... where he talked about tremendous strides,
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  Speaker 5: the president, tremendous strides with Xi Jinping, that he says
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  Speaker 5: were positive for both countries, for all people, including our farmers.
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  Speaker 5: And there are big questions about what was discussed, what
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  Speaker 5: was generated, and what deliverables we may have to show
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  Speaker 5: for all of this. And that's where we start our
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  Speaker 5: conversation with Jennifer DeLue, Bloomberg White House correspondent, is on
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  Speaker 5: the North Lawn right now as we consider what could
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  Speaker 5: have been accomplished and maybe, Jennifer, what was. We know
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  Speaker 5: there was a two-month extension of a trade truce that
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  Speaker 5: fell short of both sides' expectations. Other than the pandas
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  Speaker 5: to Atlanta, what do we have to show for this visit?
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  Speaker 6: Right.
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  Speaker 7: I think, you know, at the very end of this visit,
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  Speaker 7: as Xi heads home, it's not quite clear what the
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  Speaker 7: deliverables were. This was obviously a historic summit by all accounts,
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  Speaker 7: one marked by a lot of pomp and circumstance, red
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  Speaker 7: carpets everywhere, but not a lot of signs of major
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  Speaker 7: breakthroughs on, you know, some of the tensions within between
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  Speaker 7: the U.S.
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  Speaker 2: And China.
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  Speaker 7: Over AI, over trade, agricultural trade, and even over this
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  Speaker 7: issue of China's continued purchases of oil from Iran. Trump
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  Speaker 7: said today, very briefly to reporters, that the topic of
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  Speaker 7: the Iran war came up, but he did not elaborate
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  Speaker 7: on that. And there was no further elaboration on the
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  Speaker 7: progress he indicated had been made that would make farmers
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  Speaker 7: very happy. So right now, you know, we're seeing, obviously,
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  Speaker 7: warm relations, a lot of effusive talk, and clearly a
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  Speaker 7: lot of pomp and circumstance over the last two days,
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  Speaker 7: but not a lot in terms of policy action or
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  Speaker 7: new commitments.
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  Speaker 1: Ruffles and flourishes, but not a readout yet.
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  Speaker 5: And Jen, I suppose we could still get one and
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  Speaker 5: have a better sense of what was considered to be
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  Speaker 5: progress here. But I want to ask you specifically about energy.
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  Speaker 5: This is a world that you covered for a long
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  Speaker 5: time before you started to post up at the White House.
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  Speaker 5: And you were writing on the terminal that administration officials,
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  Speaker 5: that there was a great question about whether administration officials
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  Speaker 5: would encourage Beijing, if not the president himself, To produce
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  Speaker 5: and export more diesel as the war with Iran continues
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  Speaker 5: and we see all-time highs in the diesel market. Do
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  Speaker 5: we have any indication that this came up?
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  Speaker 7: It is, you know, it's an unsatisfying answer, but it
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  Speaker 7: is not clear at this point that this ever came
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  Speaker 7: up substantively or that there was, again, some kind of
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  Speaker 7: concrete commitment by China. Obviously, you know, there are concerns
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  Speaker 7: about China actually contracting on supply as it had earlier
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  Speaker 7: in the war where it was limiting exports. So even
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  Speaker 7: just holding the line would be significant. But right now,
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  Speaker 7: we just don't have any readout or indication that that
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  Speaker 7: was discussed.
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  Speaker 6: All right.
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  Speaker 5: That's the honest take. The latest right there from the
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  Speaker 5: North Lawn. Jen DeLue, by the way, spending time shoulder
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  Speaker 5: to shoulder there with reporters from CNN and MSNOW who
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  Speaker 5: were reinstated. And we can tell you that the TV
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  Speaker 5: pool is back in place today for the first time, well,
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  Speaker 5: all week. This was the summit that was not seen
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  Speaker 5: by many people as a result, with the exception of
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  Speaker 5: this morning's movements from the White House over tea to
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  Speaker 5: the archives. That's about all we have today. for most
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  Speaker 5: Americans to think about. But we want to broaden our
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  Speaker 5: view here and get some analysis from Sarah Schumann. an
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  Speaker 5: expert on all of this as managing director at Beacon
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  Speaker 5: Global Strategies, former senior trade representative for China at the USTR.
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  Speaker 5: It's great to see you. Welcome back to Bloomberg TV
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  Speaker 5: and radio, Sarah. The conversation today is about deliverables. Some
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  Speaker 5: folks are let down. I don't know how high expectations
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  Speaker 5: were for a framework around AI, for instance, or an
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  Speaker 5: agreement beyond this two-month extension on trade. But are we
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  Speaker 5: being a little hard on these two presidents? Could, in fact,
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  Speaker 5: knowing they will see each other two more times this year,
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  Speaker 5: be the preamble to something much bigger?
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  Speaker 1: It's great to be here.
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  Speaker 8: I will say that before this summit, the administration was
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  Speaker 8: definitely signaling to keep expectations low in terms of deliverables.
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  Speaker 8: Everyone we spoke to said, keep your expectations low. And honestly,
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  Speaker 8: I think where we are is about where we expected
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  Speaker 8: to end up. So my expectations on low deliverables have
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  Speaker 8: basically been met. But I think it's important to unpack
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  Speaker 8: why that is.
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  Speaker 1: Why is it that our.
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  Speaker 8: Expectations are so low with China? And As someone who
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  Speaker 8: spent a lot of time negotiating with China, I think
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  Speaker 8: it's important to realize that every time we ask something
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  Speaker 8: of China, they will ask for something back.
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  Speaker 1: So if we saw.
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  Speaker 8: Very large outcomes, large deliverables that China was giving to
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  Speaker 8: the United States, you'd have to ask, what is it
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  Speaker 8: that the United States agreed to give to China? And
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  Speaker 8: all the things that China wants from the United States
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  Speaker 8: right now in many ways are very strategic, involve national security,
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  Speaker 8: and are frankly off the table. And so it's not surprising, therefore,
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  Speaker 8: that it's hard to make progress on a lot of
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  Speaker 8: issues when many of those issues basically are things we
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  Speaker 8: can't negotiate on.
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  Speaker 5: Well, that's really fascinating. Are you referring to Taiwan? Are
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  Speaker 5: you referring to export controls on AI chips? What do
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  Speaker 5: you mean by national security?
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  Speaker 8: It's all of the above, frankly, right?
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  Speaker 1: All red lines.
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  Speaker 8: So in the national security space, yeah, there are a
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  Speaker 8: number of issues that the United States is not going
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  Speaker 8: to change its policy on or take its foot off
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  Speaker 8: the gas. And then in terms of the economic issues
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  Speaker 8: and including on export controls, China, of course, would love
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  Speaker 8: to see the United States roll back export controls, but
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  Speaker 8: that's not on the table. And I think Ambassador Greer
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  Speaker 8: has said that quite clearly, that that is not on
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  Speaker 8: the table for this discussion.
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  Speaker 5: Well, so does that qualify as a failure or is
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  Speaker 5: this the necessary beginnings of something greater? It sounds to
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  Speaker 5: me like you think we've already hit the ceiling. We've
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  Speaker 5: negotiated what we can negotiate.
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  Speaker 8: Yeah, I think in many ways, it's kind of reflective
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  Speaker 8: of where we are in the overall relationship and the
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  Speaker 8: dynamic between the two countries. Having served during the first
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  Speaker 8: Trump administration, I'll say the dynamic was very different during
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  Speaker 8: the first Trump administration. In many ways, the United States
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  Speaker 8: had leverage over China and was using it. And China,
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  Speaker 8: for its part, came forward with a lot of concessions,
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  Speaker 8: many of which were recorded in the phase one agreement,
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  Speaker 8: which frankly was very one-sided.
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  Speaker 1: Those days are over, right?
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  Speaker 8: And China, when President Trump was elected again, came back
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  Speaker 8: with a playbook to push back. They were not going
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  Speaker 8: to be on the back foot like they were during
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  Speaker 8: the first Trump administration. So they've ensured that this time around,
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  Speaker 8: every time the U.S. takes action, they're going to hit back,
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  Speaker 8: and they're using that leverage. So it's reflective of where
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  Speaker 8: we are overall in the dynamic right now.
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  Speaker 5: So what has changed in China's view of the U.S.,
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  Speaker 5: or has that leverage changed on a literal level?
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  Speaker 1: Four years is a short period of time.
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  Speaker 8: Yeah, in many ways, China's leverage has changed. increased, but
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  Speaker 8: part of it too was an understanding that From the
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  Speaker 8: Chinese perspective, trade had been an area that they in
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  Speaker 8: the past had viewed as the ballast of the relationship.
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  Speaker 8: But over time, and a lot has happened since the
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  Speaker 8: first Trump administration, they've come to view the relationship really
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  Speaker 8: in competitive terms and understand that that's how the United
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  Speaker 8: States views this relationship. And therefore, the areas of mutual
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  Speaker 8: benefit and win-win have really decreased. And there aren't as
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  Speaker 8: many areas where there can be made progress now. Now,
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  Speaker 8: I'll say that Of course, China's leverage has also increased
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  Speaker 8: because of the way that they've been willing to weaponize
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  Speaker 8: rare earths and critical minerals. But that vulnerability existed before. Really,
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  Speaker 8: it's just that they're willing to use it now.
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  Speaker 5: And they've realized how that leverage can work. If you
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  Speaker 5: remember the standoff over rare earths and magnets, for instance,
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  Speaker 5: and the United States had to climb down.
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  Speaker 1: On some issues at that point. I want to ask
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  Speaker 1: you about Taiwan.
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  Speaker 5: We were talking about this earlier in the rhetoric that
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  Speaker 5: we heard from President Xi was striking, essentially projecting a
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  Speaker 5: change of policy on this administration, far beyond ambiguity. Is
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  Speaker 5: that a negotiating chip for this White House as it
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  Speaker 5: tries to bring the chip-making industry here to the U.S.
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  Speaker 8: Well, I don't think that the United States is viewing
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  Speaker 8: it as something to negotiate. And I think from the
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  Speaker 8: Chinese perspective, they are trying to.
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  Speaker 6: Move the line.
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  Speaker 8: Clearly that statement about maintaining the U.S. position of opposing Taiwan,
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  Speaker 8: that has not been the U.S.
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  Speaker 3: Position.
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  Speaker 8: But they're trying to restate the reality. I think the
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  Speaker 8: fact that they're willing to do that, again, it goes
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  Speaker 8: to this sort of emboldened approach that we're seeing them
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  Speaker 8: take now as opposed to before. They're much more willing
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  Speaker 8: to do that. And I think the question is, look, U.S.
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  Speaker 8: position is not changing. Everyone says we're not doing anything differently.
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  Speaker 8: But the fact that they're even pushing in that way
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  Speaker 8: is problematic. Meanwhile, there are a number of issues like
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  Speaker 8: Taiwan arms sales that keep getting postponed. So it's one
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  Speaker 8: thing to say we believe in stability, but we also
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  Speaker 8: have to ensure that we maintain deterrence.
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  Speaker 5: If his rhetoric is changing, is President Xi's timeline on
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  Speaker 5: Taiwan changing?
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  Speaker 8: It doesn't necessarily mean that there's a change in the timeline,
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  Speaker 8: but I think that they are trying to make progress
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  Speaker 8: during this term with this president where they see this
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  Speaker 8: opening with friendly atmosphere as it is. They can try
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  Speaker 8: to move that line and then that's moved forever.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, right.
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  Speaker 5: The president wants to project something positive here, obviously. So
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  Speaker 5: it was great, great meeting for everyone, great. for our farmers.
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  Speaker 5: He said that twice in the room with she said
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  Speaker 5: it again out in the archives when people were throwing
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  Speaker 5: questions at him. Are we going to hear beyond this
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  Speaker 5: two month extension about anything involving agriculture, soybeans, beef imports,
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  Speaker 5: or is that for the next meeting?
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  Speaker 8: Well, I think, first of all, if you'll remember, China's
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  Speaker 8: already agreed to buy soybeans as well as $ 17.
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  Speaker 1: Billion in agricultural trade. And we know they have not.
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  Speaker 8: Right. So they are moving on those, but they have
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  Speaker 8: not yet met those commitments.
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  Speaker 1: That's quite clear.
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  Speaker 8: What I do expect to come out of this summit,
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  Speaker 8: and Ambassador Greer and Secretary Besson have talked about it,
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  Speaker 8: is a new board of trade. What does that mean?
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  Speaker 8: Both sides are going to be looking at where they
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  Speaker 8: can reduce tariffs on non-sensitive goods. And we are fully
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  Speaker 8: expecting agriculture to be the main area for Chinese reduction
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  Speaker 8: of their tariffs. But it's going to be a wide
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  Speaker 8: range of things. And we'll see it on both sides, right?
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  Speaker 8: So we're going to see the US eventually lower tariffs
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  Speaker 8: on some Chinese imports that are non-sensitive. We don't know
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  Speaker 8: what those will be yet, but I think they could
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  Speaker 8: be a lot of consumer goods, things like toys. And
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  Speaker 8: we may be able to see some of those things
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  Speaker 8: happen in the fall leading up to Christmas. I think
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  Speaker 8: that's the kind of stuff that the president will be
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  Speaker 8: able to point to as, look, this is helping on
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  Speaker 8: the affordability front.
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  Speaker 1: That would be meaningful on prices, right?
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  Speaker 6: It could.
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  Speaker 8: At the consumer level, it may make a difference to
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  Speaker 8: certain people's pocketbooks. I mean, we'll have to see what's
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  Speaker 8: in it. I think definitely the politics around this. are
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  Speaker 8: not lost on anybody. And so if China does reduce
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  Speaker 8: those tariffs on certain agricultural products and other things, it
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  Speaker 8: could be a benefit for farmers. But I do think
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  Speaker 8: we have to wait and see what actually happens because
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  Speaker 8: the fact that there was only a two-month extension of
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  Speaker 8: the truth really suggests that there's a lot going on
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  Speaker 8: behind the scenes here. China has not been complying with
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  Speaker 8: its commitments as the U.S.
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  Speaker 6: Views it on rare earths.
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  Speaker 8: And so we're going to have to see where we are.
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  Speaker 5: Well, we've got just a couple of months to figure
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  Speaker 5: this out, obviously, and we'll be talking about it again more.
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  Speaker 5: I'd love to actually get together with you in December
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  Speaker 5: and see how you're feeling about things. Maybe we'll kick
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  Speaker 5: the can again, and we should talk around the time
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  Speaker 5: of this next meeting. You have obviously such a great
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  Speaker 5: sense of this, Sarah. Thank you for bringing your expertise
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  Speaker 5: to us today. Sarah Schumann with Beacon Global Strategies, live
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  Speaker 5: here on Bloomberg TV and radio.
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  Speaker 1: Let's play it to the panel.
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  Speaker 5: Rick Davis and Jeanne Shanzano are with us today, our
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  Speaker 5: Bloomberg politics contributors, for their sense on what was and
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  Speaker 5: was not accomplished here When it comes to deliverables, but
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  Speaker 5: also politically speaking, the perception around.
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  Speaker 1: This whole gathering.
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  Speaker 5: Rick is our Republican strategist and partner at Stonecourt Capital.
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  Speaker 5: Jeannie is our Democratic analyst and democracy visiting fellow at
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  Speaker 5: Harvard Kennedy School's Ash Center. I don't want to project
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  Speaker 5: too much on either of you with my questions. Jeannie,
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  Speaker 5: what did you make to start off with on this
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  Speaker 5: summit and was it a success?
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  Speaker 3: You know, I think it met the very, very low
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  Speaker 3: expectations as you were just talking about. The agenda was
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  Speaker 3: very minimal. Very little was accomplished. They seem to get
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  Speaker 3: on well. They have a personal relationship. I've always said
• 13:09
  Speaker 3: and believe that talking is better than not talking. That said,
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  Speaker 3: you know, the fact that by all accounts, and I
• 13:17
  Speaker 3: don't think we yet have a readout from the White
• 13:19
  Speaker 3: House if we get one. Donald Trump did not push
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  Speaker 3: China on Russia. Donald Trump did not push China on
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  Speaker 3: Iran and how they are helping Iran attack U.S. infrastructure
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  Speaker 3: and U.S. facilities and even service members. So none of
• 13:39
  Speaker 3: that happened. And of course, Xi Jinping felt comfortable pushing
• 13:43
  Speaker 3: the United States on Taiwan. And we even had the
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  Speaker 3: ambassador say that if the United States does go ahead
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  Speaker 3: with this arms sale that you were just talking about,
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  Speaker 3: they would cancel the November meeting. So they are playing hardball,
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  Speaker 3: by all accounts, at least what we know Donald Trump
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  Speaker 3: is not. But I would also say there was some
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  Speaker 3: embarrassment here. You know, if you heard what Charles Cook
• 14:09
  Speaker 3: from the National Review said earlier, about Donald Trump mocking
• 14:13
  Speaker 3: Joe Biden again with showing Xi that pen, the auto pen.
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  Speaker 3: You know, Charles Cook described that as grotesque behavior to
• 14:24
  Speaker 3: be mocking the president of the United States to the
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  Speaker 3: communist dictator, and I'm not quoting him directly. And then,
• 14:30
  Speaker 3: of course, Donald Trump showing off the helipad while China's
• 14:35
  Speaker 3: infrastructure and what they've built in transportation in the last
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  Speaker 3: several years alone is mind numbingly impressive.
• 14:42
  Speaker 1: He's showing off the helipad.
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  Speaker 3: So some of that was also, I think, cringeworthy. And
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  Speaker 3: the idea that the White House was promoting it, that
• 14:50
  Speaker 3: was also cringeworthy.
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  Speaker 5: He appreciates good granite. He's a granite guy, we understand, Jeannie.
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  Speaker 5: What are your thoughts here, Rick? I'm trying to be open-minded,
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  Speaker 5: knowing they're going to meet again two more times. They
• 15:02
  Speaker 5: seem to be getting along real well. But many are
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  Speaker 5: projecting this as a fail because of the lack of deliverables.
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  Speaker 1: How about you?
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, I think that if we are going to invite
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  Speaker 2: the head of the Communist Party of China to the
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  Speaker 2: United States, we ought to do it for a reason.
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  Speaker 2: And it should be a part of a leverage campaign.
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  Speaker 2: I mean, as we've talked already in this program, the
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  Speaker 2: United States is having trouble sustaining its leverage. And I
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  Speaker 2: would argue partly because we are the gift to this
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  Speaker 2: Chinese regime. I mean, you know, the idea that we're
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  Speaker 2: going to invite the head of the Communist Party of
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  Speaker 2: the United States without some predisposition, some quid pro quo
• 15:43
  Speaker 2: as to what we're going to get out of that
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  Speaker 2: is astonishing to me because we are elevating this leader
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  Speaker 2: and the Chinese model to in a way that they
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  Speaker 2: can't do themselves. I mean, since World War II, the greatest,
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  Speaker 2: you know, accelerator of peace and prosperity has been the
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  Speaker 2: liberal democracies all over the world who are under siege
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  Speaker 2: by this regime. And they would like to replace it
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  Speaker 2: with a communist program. And so I don't understand why
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  Speaker 2: somehow we feel like we have to cooperate with that
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  Speaker 2: when we should be amassing our real leverage, which are
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  Speaker 2: our allies and partners who have the same issues with
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  Speaker 2: China that we do.
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  Speaker 5: Not terribly impressed on either side of this panel. Rick
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  Speaker 5: Davis and Jeanne Shanzano, thank you for walking through the
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  Speaker 5: summit with us this week. And now at its conclusion,
• 16:36
  Speaker 5: we bring you the take of our Bloomberg Politics contributors.
• 16:40
  Speaker 5: Straight ahead, we'll turn our attention to the campaign trail
• 16:42
  Speaker 5: and to Congress as the Senate winds down.
• 16:44
  Speaker 1: Stay with us on Balance of Power. We'll have much
• 16:46
  Speaker 1: more coming up after this.
• 16:51
  Speaker 4: You're listening to the Bloomberg Balance of Power podcast. Catch
• 16:54
  Speaker 4: us live weekdays at noon and 5 p.m. Eastern on
• 16:58
  Speaker 4: Apple CarPlay and Android Auto with the Bloomberg Business app.
• 17:01
  Speaker 4: You can also listen live on Amazon Alexa from our
• 17:04
  Speaker 4: flagship New York station. Just say Alexa, play Bloomberg 1130.
• 17:10
  Speaker 5: Thank you for being with us here on the Friday
• 17:11
  Speaker 5: edition of Balance of Power. We're live from Washington on
• 17:14
  Speaker 5: Bloomberg TV and radio as the summit comes to a close.
• 17:17
  Speaker 5: It is officially over now as President Xi, the first lady,
• 17:21
  Speaker 5: and the rest of the entourage head back to the
• 17:24
  Speaker 5: airport following three days here in Washington, D.C. Three days
• 17:29
  Speaker 5: that included essentially one day of bilateral negotiations and a
• 17:33
  Speaker 5: state dinner that may not have resulted in too much,
• 17:36
  Speaker 5: but they did agree to meet again. Just a moment
• 17:38
  Speaker 5: ago on Truth Social, Donald Trump writing, President Xi and
• 17:42
  Speaker 5: Madam Pang have just left D.C. heading for China. The
• 17:46
  Speaker 5: meeting was one of friendship, strength, and success for both
• 17:49
  Speaker 5: China and and the USA. We will be meeting again,
• 17:52
  Speaker 5: he writes, in November in China and then at the
• 17:56
  Speaker 5: G20 in December in Miami, Florida. The terminal just went
• 18:00
  Speaker 5: red on that in China, November. Much has been and
• 18:05
  Speaker 5: will be accomplished, he writes. I look forward to our
• 18:07
  Speaker 5: next meeting, signed President Donald J.
• 18:10
  Speaker 1: Trump.
• 18:11
  Speaker 5: Be curious to hear the analysis the next few days,
• 18:15
  Speaker 5: what comes out on the Sunday shows, what Republicans think
• 18:19
  Speaker 5: specifically have to say on social media. Remembering Roger Wicker's
• 18:25
  Speaker 5: display of opposition on the Senate floor as he talked
• 18:28
  Speaker 5: about essentially giving the communist leader of China a bubble
• 18:34
  Speaker 5: bath here in the United States with very little to
• 18:37
  Speaker 5: show for it. The optics here are interesting. There was
• 18:41
  Speaker 5: a lot of red at the White House last night.
• 18:43
  Speaker 5: Red tablecloths, red china, red flowers. And, of course, today,
• 18:48
  Speaker 5: a little tour around town. They went to the National Archives,
• 18:51
  Speaker 5: as any visitor in Washington would. You go to the Smithsonian.
• 18:55
  Speaker 5: He got face-to-face with the U.S.
• 18:57
  Speaker 1: Constitution.
• 18:58
  Speaker 5: Pretty interesting optics as a parting shot on his way
• 19:02
  Speaker 5: out of town. One update I will mention before we
• 19:05
  Speaker 5: bring in Patrick McHenry. The TV pool has been restored.
• 19:09
  Speaker 5: We just spent a couple of days showing you nothing
• 19:11
  Speaker 5: but still images. And if you're with us on Bloomberg TV,
• 19:14
  Speaker 5: there's more of them now. from the state dinner last evening.
• 19:18
  Speaker 5: But the TV pool is back together after CNN had
• 19:22
  Speaker 5: its pool status reinstated. And so you will be once again,
• 19:25
  Speaker 5: as always, be seeing live images and hearing live audio
• 19:29
  Speaker 5: from the White House. Patrick McHenry is not only a
• 19:32
  Speaker 5: Bloomberg politics contributor, but of course, the man who held
• 19:34
  Speaker 5: the gavel, former Speaker Pro Tem, former Republican congressman from
• 19:38
  Speaker 5: North Carolina who chair of the House Financial Services Committee.
• 19:41
  Speaker 1: Congressman, it's great to see you.
• 19:42
  Speaker 5: Every time we get together, I have so much I
• 19:44
  Speaker 5: want to ask you about, and I need to start
• 19:45
  Speaker 5: here before we get into midterms and congressional business.
• 19:49
  Speaker 1: What do these optics do?
• 19:50
  Speaker 5: In a state like yours in North Carolina when people
• 19:53
  Speaker 5: go online or, God forbid, open the old-fashioned newspaper and
• 19:56
  Speaker 5: see the president fetting the communist leader of China in
• 20:01
  Speaker 5: what was a very posh evening with the likes of
• 20:03
  Speaker 5: Jensen Wong and Elon Musk? Do voters think their president
• 20:08
  Speaker 5: should be in a situation like that?
• 20:12
  Speaker 1: The answer is yes.
• 20:14
  Speaker 6: And this stands one aperture above the day-to-day grind of politics.
• 20:19
  Speaker 6: But it is a curious sign. And the curious sign
• 20:23
  Speaker 6: here is that much like only Nixon could go to China,
• 20:27
  Speaker 6: being a very strong anti-communist that Congressman, Vice President, and
• 20:33
  Speaker 6: then President Nixon was, he established the the relationship that
• 20:39
  Speaker 6: we're now downstream of with China. And I think what
• 20:42
  Speaker 6: we see with President Trump is a similar mindset. He
• 20:46
  Speaker 6: rode a hawkishness towards China and trade to the White
• 20:51
  Speaker 6: House in 2016. He established for the Republican Party an
• 20:55
  Speaker 6: even more hawkish view towards the Chinese Communist Party and
• 21:00
  Speaker 6: then carrying it out with tariffs. President Biden maintained that
• 21:04
  Speaker 6: and did not.
• 21:05
  Speaker 1: Roll those back.
• 21:06
  Speaker 6: Now you have both parties are hawkish towards the Chinese
• 21:09
  Speaker 6: Communist Party and our trading relationship with them. And then
• 21:14
  Speaker 6: we see the pivot. The pivot has occurred this year,
• 21:17
  Speaker 6: this calendar year, where this administration has been keen to
• 21:21
  Speaker 6: get a trading deal and a more lasting relationship and
• 21:28
  Speaker 6: a basis for relationship with the Chinese government. So the
• 21:34
  Speaker 6: optics this week, a lot of pageantry, yes, but very
• 21:38
  Speaker 6: low on substance.
• 21:39
  Speaker 1: It was all about the.
• 21:40
  Speaker 6: Feels of these two leaders going into the next meeting. And,
• 21:46
  Speaker 6: and so I, all eyes are on these two leaders,
• 21:49
  Speaker 6: but very little substance at this point.
• 21:52
  Speaker 1: Well, did you expect more than that?
• 21:53
  Speaker 5: I mean, there was talk of an AI framework, for instance,
• 21:55
  Speaker 5: I know that's a debate here domestically that you have
• 21:59
  Speaker 5: been wading into a you know, maybe more on trade or,
• 22:03
  Speaker 5: or does this take a couple of meetings, Congressman, and
• 22:05
  Speaker 5: we need to give them some space?
• 22:08
  Speaker 6: Well, look on trade, uh, trade, this has been a
• 22:11
  Speaker 6: continuation of a continuation of a continuation this year. Um,
• 22:16
  Speaker 6: and now what we hear and, um, the, uh, Lazar
• 22:20
  Speaker 6: geopolitical team has put is, is put out some, uh,
• 22:23
  Speaker 6: some notes on this. Um, They've outlined that the key
• 22:27
  Speaker 6: takeaway here is that January becomes the new default for
• 22:32
  Speaker 6: what's going to happen with trade. So this was an
• 22:35
  Speaker 6: agreement to continue the stability that we currently have on trade.
• 22:39
  Speaker 6: But Taiwan, unresolved, undiscussed. Rare earths, unresolved, undiscussed, at least
• 22:46
  Speaker 6: at this point. And tech and AI export controls and
• 22:51
  Speaker 6: those things, we're going to see what these conversations are.
• 22:54
  Speaker 6: established both in New York and here in Washington this week.
• 22:58
  Speaker 6: I think we've got to wait to see what happened there.
• 23:01
  Speaker 6: But we could see some movement, at least in a direction,
• 23:06
  Speaker 6: on those matters, which is really quite up in the
• 23:08
  Speaker 6: air at this moment.
• 23:10
  Speaker 1: Interesting.
• 23:10
  Speaker 5: Well, we're looking at the final throws of this session
• 23:14
  Speaker 5: of the United States Senate. House members are, of course,
• 23:18
  Speaker 5: already on the recess and running for re-election. I'm wondering,
• 23:22
  Speaker 5: If you see any chance for anything else coming out
• 23:24
  Speaker 5: of this body here, it looks like they're going to
• 23:26
  Speaker 5: get to the Ratepayers Protection Act. This is the data
• 23:29
  Speaker 5: center bill by Republican Senator John Houston, and we're told
• 23:33
  Speaker 5: the Democrats don't.
• 23:34
  Speaker 1: Want to give him a win before the election. So
• 23:36
  Speaker 1: is the store actually already closed?
• 23:38
  Speaker 3: It is.
• 23:40
  Speaker 6: Now it's a matter of how you leave town and
• 23:43
  Speaker 6: on what terms you leave town. Look, the Ratepayers Protection
• 23:46
  Speaker 6: Act is about– energy use and whether or not those
• 23:52
  Speaker 6: in the vicinity of data centers will see increases or
• 23:56
  Speaker 6: decreases in their electricity costs. And a cost of living election,
• 24:01
  Speaker 6: this is a powerful one. And Senator Husted in Ohio,
• 24:05
  Speaker 6: this is something he's campaigning on, including the Republican nominee
• 24:09
  Speaker 6: for governor. So we're seeing this movement in this election
• 24:11
  Speaker 6: pretty hot and heavy on AI, but not AI specifically,
• 24:15
  Speaker 6: but data centers and the physical build-out of data centers
• 24:19
  Speaker 6: becoming the flashpoint. You also see with permitting reform discussions,
• 24:24
  Speaker 6: a lot has occurred in the last month in the
• 24:27
  Speaker 6: Senate and really a maturing of that product on AI.
• 24:31
  Speaker 6: how you enable more projects, clean energy, all energy sources, frankly,
• 24:35
  Speaker 6: and doing big projects here in the United States and
• 24:38
  Speaker 6: getting federal permitting done more quickly. So this would be,
• 24:43
  Speaker 6: think of the Ezra Klein abundance Democrats working with Republicans
• 24:48
  Speaker 6: who've long held that we need to be able to
• 24:50
  Speaker 6: build big things unfettered from environmentalists slowing down the process
• 24:55
  Speaker 6: and them coming together We keep.
• 24:58
  Speaker 1: Hearing things fell apart, though, right? Are you holding out
• 25:00
  Speaker 1: hope for a permitting bill?
• 25:02
  Speaker 6: Well, they've come a long way, but the holdup here
• 25:05
  Speaker 6: is the election. And frankly, what we've seen since Labor
• 25:08
  Speaker 6: Day in the Senate is exactly what we will see
• 25:12
  Speaker 6: every post-Labor Day of an election year. on Capitol Hill,
• 25:16
  Speaker 6: which is politics overwhelming any way to see rationally on policy.
• 25:22
  Speaker 6: This happened in the crypto vote last week in the U.S.
• 25:25
  Speaker 9: Senate.
• 25:26
  Speaker 6: It happened this week on permitting reform. It happened this
• 25:31
  Speaker 6: week in the Senate on this Ratepayer Protection Act. So
• 25:35
  Speaker 6: what we see here is the Democratic Party not willing
• 25:38
  Speaker 6: to give the Republican Party any wins before the election.
• 25:41
  Speaker 6: Why throw your opponent a lifeline when they are drowning?
• 25:47
  Speaker 6: And in fact, my party feels like it's drowning right
• 25:50
  Speaker 6: now pre-election.
• 25:52
  Speaker 5: Well, let's talk about that because, boy, the– The walls
• 25:56
  Speaker 5: are closing in on Michael Watley, it seems, in your
• 26:00
  Speaker 5: state of North Carolina, and Ken Paxton in Texas.
• 26:03
  Speaker 1: Are you buying the polling numbers?
• 26:06
  Speaker 5: And what kind of phone calls are you having with
• 26:07
  Speaker 5: your friends on the trail in the evenings, Patrick McHenry?
• 26:11
  Speaker 1: Because it's starting to feel a little like panic.
• 26:14
  Speaker 9: Okay.
• 26:15
  Speaker 6: Look, you have folks that knew this was going to
• 26:17
  Speaker 6: be stormy weather, knew that it was stormy weather, and
• 26:20
  Speaker 6: they had battened down the hatches on the ship. They
• 26:22
  Speaker 6: were ready for it. But in the last two weeks,
• 26:25
  Speaker 6: it's been particularly rough. Polling numbers are shifting against Republicans.
• 26:31
  Speaker 6: Affordability still being the main concern in most states across
• 26:36
  Speaker 6: the country. There are few exceptions. Those few exceptions are
• 26:41
  Speaker 6: in Democratic states where Republicans are doing better than in
• 26:45
  Speaker 6: Republican states, which is an interesting phenomenon. They can see
• 26:50
  Speaker 6: that their local government, their state and local government has
• 26:53
  Speaker 6: some bearing on their welfare, and they have a more
• 26:56
  Speaker 6: complicated message. Democrats have a more complicated message in Democratic states.
• 27:01
  Speaker 6: But in Republican states like Florida and in Texas and
• 27:05
  Speaker 6: even a state like North Carolina, my North Carolina that's purple,
• 27:09
  Speaker 6: There's a deep set of skepticism that Republicans can answer
• 27:14
  Speaker 6: this question on affordability, and that has become.
• 27:17
  Speaker 1: Quite a struggle. Only got a minute.
• 27:20
  Speaker 5: When you see money being moved away from a race
• 27:23
  Speaker 5: like we are, the Whatley campaign in North Carolina, is
• 27:28
  Speaker 5: the party giving up the ghost on a seat like that?
• 27:31
  Speaker 6: Well, you can't listen to the words they say. You
• 27:33
  Speaker 6: have to follow the dollars. And you have folks that say, well,
• 27:36
  Speaker 6: I don't have a race. I'm really, really well positioned.
• 27:41
  Speaker 6: And yet they're laying on more money. It tells you
• 27:43
  Speaker 6: there is a problem. They've seen something privately. So follow
• 27:47
  Speaker 6: the dollars. What you see here is a massive investment
• 27:49
  Speaker 6: in Texas, and that's coming online, which shows that it
• 27:54
  Speaker 6: is winnable for Paxton, even though the voters really gravely
• 27:57
  Speaker 6: dislike him. They want a Republican voice in Washington. And
• 28:01
  Speaker 6: you see Democrats and Republicans laying on heavily in Michigan
• 28:05
  Speaker 6: as well. So you can see these battlegrounds and then
• 28:08
  Speaker 6: the merging battlegrounds.
• 28:09
  Speaker 1: So follow the money.
• 28:10
  Speaker 5: Follow the money, says Patrick McHenry. It's great to see you, sir.
• 28:14
  Speaker 5: Welcome back, as always. He's a Bloomberg Politics contributor now.
• 28:18
  Speaker 5: Patrick McHenry, former chairman of the House Financial Services Committee.
• 28:22
  Speaker 1: Frank Luntz is coming in.
• 28:23
  Speaker 5: Next, only here on Bloomberg. Stay with us on Balance
• 28:26
  Speaker 5: of Power. We'll have much more coming up after this.
• 28:32
  Speaker 4: You're listening to the Bloomberg Balance of Power podcast. Catch
• 28:36
  Speaker 4: us live weekdays at noon and 5 p.m. Eastern on
• 28:39
  Speaker 4: Apple CarPlay and Android Auto with the Bloomberg Business app.
• 28:43
  Speaker 4: Listen on demand wherever you get your podcasts or watch
• 28:46
  Speaker 4: us live on YouTube.
• 28:49
  Speaker 5: Thanks for coming along. The Friday edition of Balance of Power.
• 28:51
  Speaker 5: We're live in Washington at the tail end of the summit.
• 28:55
  Speaker 5: President Xi leaving town now after visiting the National Archives,
• 28:59
  Speaker 5: coming face to face with the U.S.
• 29:01
  Speaker 1: Constitution. a short time ago.
• 29:03
  Speaker 5: President Trump, I mean, if you come to Washington, you
• 29:05
  Speaker 5: go to the Smithsonian, and that's actually what he did
• 29:08
  Speaker 5: with the first lady to conclude what was a roughly
• 29:11
  Speaker 5: two and a half or two day long summit, really
• 29:14
  Speaker 5: one full day of talks in the state dinner that
• 29:16
  Speaker 5: have left some questioning, if you've been with us on
• 29:19
  Speaker 5: the air here, what the deliverables are. The president on
• 29:22
  Speaker 5: Truth Social a short time ago pointing to the next meeting.
• 29:25
  Speaker 5: He says he will meet again in November in China,
• 29:28
  Speaker 5: and then again at the G20 in December in Miami, Florida. Much,
• 29:32
  Speaker 5: he says, has been and will be accomplished, and we'll
• 29:34
  Speaker 5: see about that with the lack of a readout from
• 29:36
  Speaker 5: the White House. But another meeting will take place, the
• 29:38
  Speaker 5: terminal with the redhead. on that just a short time ago.
• 29:43
  Speaker 5: But talking about the midterms as well and the mindset
• 29:46
  Speaker 5: here in America with 39 days before we vote, we
• 29:50
  Speaker 5: just talked to Patrick McHenry about this, with ideas that
• 29:54
  Speaker 5: are changing pretty quickly here about who might be leading
• 29:58
  Speaker 5: what in states like Texas.
• 30:01
  Speaker 1: Even Kansas were told. The ground might be shifting beneath
• 30:07
  Speaker 1: our feet.
• 30:08
  Speaker 5: And we bring you back to the Republican National Convention
• 30:11
  Speaker 5: in Dallas just a couple of weeks ago when the
• 30:14
  Speaker 5: president asked voters this question.
• 30:16
  Speaker 1: I'm asking you to pretend that I'm on the ballot.
• 30:20
  Speaker 1: I'm on the ballot. I'm on the ballot.
• 30:23
  Speaker 2: If the Republicans win, you win with us and you
• 30:26
  Speaker 2: get $ 5, 000, it will be called.
• 30:31
  Speaker 1: The Trump dividend. We'll call it the Trump dividend.
• 30:36
  Speaker 5: I almost forgot about the $ 5, 000 checks.
• 30:38
  Speaker 1: That hasn't been mentioned all week, has it?
• 30:40
  Speaker 5: It's a great pleasure always to spend time with Frank Luntz,
• 30:43
  Speaker 5: and I'm glad to say he's in town and with
• 30:45
  Speaker 5: us at this important moment.
• 30:47
  Speaker 1: Of course, the force behind FIL Inc.
• 30:50
  Speaker 5: where he is the CEO and a longtime celebrity pollster.
• 30:53
  Speaker 1: Can I call you that? Frank Luntz, it's good to
• 30:55
  Speaker 1: see you. Welcome back.
• 30:55
  Speaker 9: I'm embarrassed.
• 30:57
  Speaker 1: Well, listen.
• 30:57
  Speaker 9: Because we have to get it right in the end.
• 31:01
  Speaker 9: And I know how my voice sounds. I know how
• 31:03
  Speaker 9: I look. And it's a really important time for the country.
• 31:08
  Speaker 9: And I'm glad that you showed that clip because I'm
• 31:11
  Speaker 9: not sure if I was the president, I would have
• 31:13
  Speaker 9: said I'm on the ballot.
• 31:15
  Speaker 1: Will people pretend as he asked them to?
• 31:18
  Speaker 9: If they do, it's not going to be good for him.
• 31:22
  Speaker 9: His numbers are at the lowest they've been since he
• 31:25
  Speaker 9: was elected president. That even some people on the Republican
• 31:30
  Speaker 9: side are wondering if this is the direction that they want.
• 31:35
  Speaker 9: And I look at the issues, the challenges of affordability,
• 31:40
  Speaker 9: of national security, of where we are as a country
• 31:43
  Speaker 9: and where we are going. And there's a lot of doubt,
• 31:47
  Speaker 9: a lot of division, a lot of anger in America
• 31:50
  Speaker 9: right now. And I'm not sure if I want to
• 31:52
  Speaker 9: have people focused on me at that moment. Yeah. Wow.
• 31:57
  Speaker 5: The last two weeks have been remarkable, and we've been
• 31:59
  Speaker 5: trying to illuminate this over the course of the hour.
• 32:02
  Speaker 1: It's been reflected in polls.
• 32:04
  Speaker 5: It's been reflected in rhetoric and a feeling that something
• 32:08
  Speaker 5: is changing. Have you ever seen an acceleration like this
• 32:14
  Speaker 5: in the corrosion, in this case, of Republican polling?
• 32:17
  Speaker 1: Do you believe what we're seeing and hearing?
• 32:19
  Speaker 9: I see it wherever I go.
• 32:21
  Speaker 1: How's it been so fast?
• 32:22
  Speaker 9: I hear it because the public at a certain point
• 32:25
  Speaker 9: after Labor Day— And this is something that we talked
• 32:28
  Speaker 9: about on your show.
• 32:28
  Speaker 1: That's right, sure we are.
• 32:29
  Speaker 9: That people don't take it seriously until Labor Day. And
• 32:33
  Speaker 9: after Labor Day, they just start to make a decision,
• 32:36
  Speaker 9: both do they want to reward the past and do
• 32:39
  Speaker 9: they want a different future? And across America right now,
• 32:44
  Speaker 9: the public is saying, can we get out of this
• 32:48
  Speaker 9: affordability crisis? Can we afford our food, our fuel, if
• 32:52
  Speaker 9: you're working class? Can we afford housing and health care
• 32:55
  Speaker 9: if you're upper middle class? And the public is starting
• 32:59
  Speaker 9: to wonder, our national security, are we getting any closer
• 33:03
  Speaker 9: to solving the war between Russia and Ukraine, to solving
• 33:08
  Speaker 9: the dispute between us and Iran, and even our relationship
• 33:12
  Speaker 9: with China? Is it productive? And it seems reasonably okay
• 33:17
  Speaker 9: over the last 48 hours. But in the end, do
• 33:20
  Speaker 9: I want four more years like this? Do I want
• 33:23
  Speaker 9: to pursue the current politics and policy Or do I
• 33:27
  Speaker 9: want to change? And what I'm seeing in places like Alaska, Iowa,
• 33:34
  Speaker 9: North Carolina, Kansas, these are places where Republicans usually do well.
• 33:39
  Speaker 5: Yes.
• 33:40
  Speaker 9: And the public in those states is saying, I may
• 33:43
  Speaker 9: want to change.
• 33:45
  Speaker 5: Are Republicans, as money is moved around, and we're seeing
• 33:48
  Speaker 5: super PACs move money around, the triage game can be
• 33:53
  Speaker 5: very difficult.
• 33:53
  Speaker 1: Are they giving up on a seat like Michael Watley in.
• 33:57
  Speaker 5: North Carolina, will they give up on Ken Paxton or
• 33:59
  Speaker 5: is that simply one that cannot be lost?
• 34:02
  Speaker 9: Texas is a core of the Republican constituency. But for Republicans,
• 34:07
  Speaker 9: they're looking at a place like New Hampshire, which is
• 34:10
  Speaker 9: an opportunity for them to bring one on the Democratic
• 34:13
  Speaker 9: side over to them. And that's a significant decision. But
• 34:18
  Speaker 9: you have to look at Texas and wonder if it's
• 34:20
  Speaker 9: really worth investing, not millions and not tens of millions.
• 34:27
  Speaker 9: but potentially 100 million to try to win that seat over.
• 34:31
  Speaker 9: And that's a seat where Donald Trump got in the
• 34:33
  Speaker 9: middle of it and said, do not support the incumbent,
• 34:36
  Speaker 9: support the Republican challenger. So he's going to be on
• 34:41
  Speaker 9: the hot seat for that. And for him, Dallas was
• 34:46
  Speaker 9: a success in that his own voters paid attention and
• 34:51
  Speaker 9: he has to ensure that they vote. The challenge is
• 34:54
  Speaker 9: how do you get your own voters to and those
• 34:56
  Speaker 9: swing voters that moved over to the Republicans in 2024
• 35:01
  Speaker 9: and gave them both the House and the Senate.
• 35:03
  Speaker 5: If Republicans lose the Senate seat in Texas, knowing that
• 35:07
  Speaker 5: Donald Trump chose not to endorse John Cornyn, knowing that
• 35:11
  Speaker 5: Donald Trump started this war with Iran that sent diesel
• 35:15
  Speaker 5: to $ 6. 50 to an all-time high.
• 35:18
  Speaker 9: Yes, but he did so for a legitimate purpose, which
• 35:22
  Speaker 9: is to ensure— Then Iran does not get nuclear capability.
• 35:25
  Speaker 5: Will voters be nuanced enough to make that call, or
• 35:28
  Speaker 5: will they say this was Donald Trump's fault?
• 35:30
  Speaker 9: That's the best question of all. And we don't know
• 35:33
  Speaker 9: the answer to that because we don't know what he's
• 35:35
  Speaker 9: going to say. I'll tell you, as a language person,
• 35:38
  Speaker 9: that his communication over the last few weeks could have
• 35:41
  Speaker 9: been better, that he could have drawn a better distinction,
• 35:44
  Speaker 9: not to be anti-Joe Biden, because Joe Biden is gone.
• 35:49
  Speaker 9: That's finished. To be focused on the future. What is
• 35:53
  Speaker 9: it about his policies that will make food, fuel, housing,
• 35:57
  Speaker 9: and health care less expensive? That's what he needs to
• 36:00
  Speaker 9: be talking about. And in the end, this is a
• 36:03
  Speaker 9: congressional vote, not a presidential vote. And I don't know
• 36:08
  Speaker 9: if he's going to do that.
• 36:10
  Speaker 1: Are you giving up on both the House and the Senate?
• 36:13
  Speaker 9: Well, it's not for me to give up because I
• 36:15
  Speaker 9: gave up on my partisanship a decade ago.
• 36:17
  Speaker 1: Understood. Are you giving up on this majority?
• 36:20
  Speaker 9: No, but I'd say the majority is definitely in play.
• 36:24
  Speaker 9: I think the House is more difficult than the Senate,
• 36:27
  Speaker 9: but I can absolutely see a reason for Democrats to
• 36:30
  Speaker 9: win both, and that is, in a single word, turnout.
• 36:34
  Speaker 9: In the end, the Democrats have a 2% advantage, which
• 36:38
  Speaker 9: means more Democrats will vote than Republicans by 2%, and
• 36:42
  Speaker 9: there'll be at least two seats, maybe three seats, decided
• 36:45
  Speaker 9: by that amount. And this is what should happen. frighten
• 36:50
  Speaker 9: Republicans right now that their own base, even with that
• 36:53
  Speaker 9: Dallas convention, their own base is not nearly as engaged
• 36:57
  Speaker 9: as Democrats, that there are more people who want to
• 37:00
  Speaker 9: send a message, a negative message, to Donald Trump than
• 37:04
  Speaker 9: want to go out, take the time, vote, and send
• 37:07
  Speaker 9: him an affirmation.
• 37:08
  Speaker 5: It's remarkable that we're having this conversation now when two
• 37:10
  Speaker 5: or three weeks ago it was about Democrats being challenged
• 37:13
  Speaker 5: within their own party by Democratic socialists. They might lose
• 37:17
  Speaker 5: Michigan and Because Haley Stevens didn't win.
• 37:21
  Speaker 1: Not unlike what we saw in Texas at the other extreme.
• 37:26
  Speaker 9: That's critical.
• 37:28
  Speaker 1: Please.
• 37:28
  Speaker 9: Which we see the parties on both sides breaking apart.
• 37:33
  Speaker 9: And that's something that can either be a welcome change,
• 37:36
  Speaker 9: where you get a new chance to cast new votes
• 37:40
  Speaker 9: to affirm what you believe in. The Democratic ideology is
• 37:44
  Speaker 9: up for grabs. The Democratic leadership is up for grabs.
• 37:47
  Speaker 9: The same thing that happened with the Republicans and the
• 37:50
  Speaker 9: MAGA voters. This could be a good thing. But if
• 37:53
  Speaker 9: it is used negatively, if it's used to divide and
• 37:57
  Speaker 9: to polarize and to tear people down rather than build
• 38:01
  Speaker 9: up something new, then that's a problem.
• 38:03
  Speaker 5: You are a language expert, as you said a moment ago.
• 38:06
  Speaker 5: And I want to ask you about it. I didn't
• 38:08
  Speaker 5: plan to ask you this. The Republican president's attempt to
• 38:12
  Speaker 5: rebrand artificial intelligence, he wants to call it superintelligence or S.I.,
• 38:18
  Speaker 5: I've even seen some of his surrogates stop interviewers and say, no, no, no, no.
• 38:21
  Speaker 1: I think it was Seb Gorka said, no, no, no, no, no.
• 38:24
  Speaker 1: There's no AI. It's SI.
• 38:26
  Speaker 5: Why would you attempt to rebrand something like this? Or
• 38:29
  Speaker 5: is it a smart effort?
• 38:31
  Speaker 9: Well, the worst situation right now for the business community
• 38:34
  Speaker 9: is what's happened to these data centers. No one has
• 38:37
  Speaker 9: presented the best argument for why they will result in jobs, opportunities,
• 38:43
  Speaker 9: healthcare advances that could never have been conceived of five
• 38:47
  Speaker 9: years ago. Changes to our economy that would benefit tens
• 38:51
  Speaker 9: of millions of people if done properly. The data center
• 38:56
  Speaker 9: issue has been determined as being a negative for the
• 39:01
  Speaker 9: American economy, for opportunities in states.
• 39:04
  Speaker 1: Could that be turned around?
• 39:05
  Speaker 9: It has to be. And the challenge for AI, because
• 39:10
  Speaker 9: I will call it what people call it, is whether
• 39:14
  Speaker 9: we're going to see Everything that could be done for science,
• 39:21
  Speaker 9: for health, for the environment, for so many quality of
• 39:25
  Speaker 9: life issues on a day-to-day basis, or whether we're going
• 39:28
  Speaker 9: to be talking about doomsday.
• 39:30
  Speaker 1: Yes, right.
• 39:31
  Speaker 9: And I'm a pretty negative person. I acknowledge that. I
• 39:35
  Speaker 9: don't see anything discussing what AI brings to us in
• 39:40
  Speaker 9: a positive way, and most of the conversation is negative.
• 39:43
  Speaker 1: So that's its own campaign. Who needs to lead it?
• 39:48
  Speaker 9: That's a great question.
• 39:49
  Speaker 1: Is it industry? Is it government?
• 39:52
  Speaker 9: It has to be both.
• 39:53
  Speaker 6: Okay.
• 39:53
  Speaker 9: And it has to be people who are independent from both.
• 39:56
  Speaker 9: The thing that I've realized in America today is we
• 39:59
  Speaker 9: don't trust experts. People watching us right now don't necessarily
• 40:03
  Speaker 9: trust us. We have to prove to them that we
• 40:06
  Speaker 9: are independent and that we are focused on their advantages,
• 40:10
  Speaker 9: not our own. And that has not happened. The media
• 40:13
  Speaker 9: is at its all-time lowest level in credibility. But so
• 40:17
  Speaker 9: is Congress. So are the courts. And these institutions, we
• 40:22
  Speaker 9: need to believe in them. And this is the reason
• 40:24
  Speaker 9: why I'm so blessed to work at West Point. The
• 40:29
  Speaker 9: military is the one institution that still has universal support
• 40:33
  Speaker 9: across Democrats, Independents, and Republicans. And I'm telling people, and
• 40:38
  Speaker 9: I'm proud to say this, there should be a West
• 40:40
  Speaker 9: Point standard. As a cadet, you cannot lie, cheat, steal,
• 40:45
  Speaker 9: or tolerate those who do. Imagine an elected official actually saying,
• 40:50
  Speaker 9: my partisanship doesn't matter. My character does. And I will
• 40:55
  Speaker 9: produce and I will adhere to that West Point standard.
• 40:58
  Speaker 9: I will not lie. I will not cheat. I will
• 41:01
  Speaker 9: not steal. And I will not let members of my
• 41:03
  Speaker 9: own party tolerate.
• 41:04
  Speaker 1: Well, that's it.
• 41:05
  Speaker 5: You will not tolerate those who do. That might be
• 41:07
  Speaker 5: the most important line in that statement.
• 41:09
  Speaker 9: So how do we convince people at home who watch
• 41:13
  Speaker 9: a show like this that they should raise their standards?
• 41:17
  Speaker 9: that we should ask of Democrats and Republicans alike, abide
• 41:21
  Speaker 9: by that West Point standard.
• 41:23
  Speaker 5: I think you've already explained why, but that's why we
• 41:25
  Speaker 5: have you come by here as often as we can.
• 41:27
  Speaker 1: Frank, it's great to see you.
• 41:28
  Speaker 5: Frank Luntz requires no introduction, but it is F-I-L, and
• 41:33
  Speaker 5: we'll get him back as soon as we can. Subscribe
• 41:35
  Speaker 5: to the Balance of Power podcast so you can hear
• 41:38
  Speaker 5: this full conversation.
• 41:39
  Speaker 1: If you're watching us on YouTube, you can pause it
• 41:41
  Speaker 1: and back it up.
• 41:44
  Speaker 5: Thanks for listening to the Balance of Power podcast. Make
• 41:47
  Speaker 5: sure to subscribe, if you haven't already, at Apple, Spotify,
• 41:50
  Speaker 5: or wherever you get your podcasts. And you can find
• 41:53
  Speaker 5: us live every weekday from Washington, D.C. at noontime Eastern
• 41:56
  Speaker 5: at Bloomberg.com.