Today on the RealClearPolitics podcast, Carl Cannon, Tom Bevan, and Andrew Walworth break down Ken Paxton defeating Sen. John Cornyn in the Texas GOP Senate primary, and Sen. Bernie Sanders campaigning for Graham Platner in Maine. Greg Orman, RCP contributor and author of “A Declaration of Independents,” joins the show to discuss whether the Paxton-Talarico race gives Democrats a corruption argument in Texas, and whether independent voters are looking for an alternative to both parties. Plus, the panel discusses Pope Leo’s new encyclical on artificial intelligence, JD Vance’s reaction to the document, and plans for a UFC event on the White House grounds as part of America’s 250th birthday celebration. Listen live weekdays at 11:00 a.m. Eastern on SiriusXM’s Megyn Kelly Channel 111, or on Apple, Spotify, YouTube, or other platforms.

00:00 – Opening: Paxton’s Blowout Win in Texas “It was a landslide,” Carl Cannon said about Paxton defeating Sen. John Cornyn in the Texas GOP Senate primary. “This has been a season where Trump has absolutely dominated Republican primaries. Whatever is going on with his national job approval ratings, he’s still a potent force in the Republican Party.” Watch: Paxton: Talarico Is A Vegan Who Thinks God Is Non-Binary And There Are 6 Sexes Watch: Talarico: “Puppet Politicians” Like Paxton Grandstand On “Old, Tired Culture War” While His Donors Pick Your Pockets “The best that Talarico can hope for is that a certain slice of Cornyn voters just will not vote for Paxton at all. That doesn’t mean they’re going to vote for Talarico, but they’re just going to stay home,” Tom Bevan said. *** 13:46 – Bernie Campaigns for Platner The panel turns to Sen. Bernie Sanders, out campaigning for populist Democrat Graham Platner in Maine this weekend, and why a series of scandals hasn’t touched Platner’s numbers. Watch: Graham Platner At Rally With Bernie Sanders: “No One Is Coming To Save Us,” “We Need A Political Revolution” “It may work, but it’s still cheap demagoguery,” Cannon said about Platner’s message. “This dystopian future that the socialists and the Democratic left paint–this idea that the middle class is being squeezed and that rich people are doing it. It doesn’t add up.” RCP Average: 2026 Maine Senate – Collins vs. Platner (Platner+7.8) “He’s like cosplaying–he went to an elite school, his family owned this island, he’s standing on stage next to a socialist who owns three homes, talking about how the rich are going to live behind walls,” Bevan said about Platner. “The whole thing is phony, but it seems to be working.” He added, “I will again remind our listeners that Susan Collins trailed in every single poll in 2020, her last reelection battle, by 7 or 8 points, and she won that race going away.” *** 24:00 – Do Independents Have an Opening in Texas? Greg Orman, RCP contributor and author of “A Declaration of Independents,” joins the group to discuss his latest RCP article on how the Justice Department’s Anti-Weaponization fund will play with independent voters in the midterms, and whether polarizing candidates from both parties will open up opportunities for independents. “I refer to it more as a slush fund. I don’t think of it as anything legitimate,” Orman said about the DOJ’s “Anti-Weaponization” settlement fund. “Somehow he was able to turn that into a $ 1.8 billion fund to reward his loyalists without congressional oversight.” Read Orman’s latest article for RCP: Trump’s Settlement Deepens GOP’s Independent Voter Problem About the Texas Senate candidates, Orman added: “Arguing that Ken Paxton is corrupt is something that you would get agreement from, not just Democrats, but many Republicans, many of whom voted to impeach him, and convict him of very corrupt acts.” “The Republican and the Democratic brands are the two worst consumer brands I know of because they’re defined exclusively by negative advertising,” he said. “If Coke said Pepsi makes you three inches shorter, and Pepsi said Coke makes your hair fall out, no one would drink Coke or Pepsi.” “The reason it works in politics is that we have only two choices,” he said. *** 38:23 – Pope Leo XIV Tackles AI Walworth, Cannon, and Bevan discuss reactions to Pope Leo’s encyclical on artificial intelligence, including Vice President JD Vance’s comments that he found the document profound. Watch: Pope Leo XIV: “Artificial Intelligence Needs To Be Disarmed” “We need to have that discussion. I’m glad the Pope is getting us focused on it,” Tom Bevan said. “There has been a lot of commentary about this from left and right. And it doesn’t travel down the usual ideological lines, which is actually refreshing for a change.” NBC News: Vance Calls Pope Leo’s AI Warnings ‘Profound’ “I was interested by JD Vance’s response,” Andrew Walworth added, noting that Vance has criticized the Pope on issues such as just war doctrine. “I think this will have a lot of resonance in America, and especially because he’s the American pope.” *** 43:36 – UFC Arena Under Construction at White House The episode ends with a look forward to the plans for a UFC event on the White House grounds for America’s 250th birthday celebration on June 14 (also Trump’s birthday). “Look, it’s not something that I would have put on the menu for the 250th birthday, but it is Trump,” Bevan said. “I understand why some people don’t like it and other people do, but I’m not going to rend my garments over it.” “I would say it was tacky, but you two would have accused me of being an elitist,” Cannon said.

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