On this episode, Camille and I look into California's newly proposed "windfall tax" on oil companies because gas prices are so high in California. We analyze what a windfall tax is, how they have fared in history, and why they don't work to actually help the consumer. Also we take a look at Trump's new NFT trading cards for fun.
Links Mentioned in Show
https://calmatters.org/economy/2022/10/california-gas-tax/
https://www.gov.ca.gov/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Price-Gouging-penalty-proposal-language.pdf?emrc=075304
https://taxfoundation.org/windfall-profits-taxes-still-bad-idea
https://www.propublica.org/article/california-oil-wells-shell-exxonmobil
https://nypost.com/2022/12/15/donald-trumps-major-announcement-is-a-cringey-ntf-line-of-himself/
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00:00:00
What's going on everybody? Thanks for tuning in to another
00:00:03
episode of California and a gram here with Camille again tonight
00:00:06
and we're going to be talking about windfall taxes, we were
00:00:10
talking about a lot of gasoline and a lot of what the heck is a
00:00:13
windfall tax and is it as simple as just saying we're going to
00:00:18
tax the gas companies for as much profit as they're making on
00:00:22
/ gasoline or per gallon of gasoline.
00:00:25
We were sort of kicking this idea around round because I got
00:00:31
an a pseudo debate with a bunch of lawyers in first off.
00:00:36
Before we get get started, Camille, how are you doing
00:00:39
tonight? I'm good.
00:00:40
Thank you. How are you?
00:00:42
I'm doing. Alright, trying to stay as warm
00:00:43
as possible for us us week. Southern Californians.
00:00:47
Who are like. I'm a cat.
00:00:48
It's below. 60 degrees. We're all going to die.
00:00:51
Give us six months and will complain about the heat.
00:00:54
Yep, absolutely. Will all be sweltering looking
00:00:56
for air conditioning. So anyway, Why I got into this
00:01:01
debate in a lawyer chat room with a bunch of attorneys who
00:01:07
thought that the windfall tax was a good idea because I had
00:01:11
posted this quote, from Robert Reich.
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And if you don't know who Robert Reich is, Robert Reich is a four
00:01:19
foot tall, Harvard Economist I believe.
00:01:23
And that's, that's his real claim to fame.
00:01:27
He's become like a very Good mouthpiece for the
00:01:33
establishment, in the sense that his whole economic philosophy
00:01:37
is, if we just give the government more power than we
00:01:43
can fix all of our economic woes.
00:01:45
So, he wrote this whole article about inflation and threw in
00:01:50
there. That one way, people could
00:01:52
tackle and inflation is to do what governor Newsom is doing,
00:01:56
which is proposing, a windfall tax on.
00:01:59
On gas and oil companies because that will work that will get the
00:02:02
prices to go down and that's going to help people at the pump
00:02:08
side. Note, I was thinking about that
00:02:10
and this really has nothing to do with the windfall tax.
00:02:12
I've noticed in our society. That if you're a Harvard or Yale
00:02:18
Professor, you're almost like a high priest or Priestess who's,
00:02:22
like, you can't question them. Like they just know everything
00:02:26
and not to get all biblical on everybody, but it kind of
00:02:28
reminds me of like the Pharisees who were like, you there were
00:02:32
infallible, you couldn't question them.
00:02:33
That's what it's become really with like Harvard and Yale
00:02:36
professors, or Columbia or any of those Ivy League's.
00:02:38
So, anyway, got in this whole tizzy, a lot of people were
00:02:41
like, now, this is a great idea. We should absolutely do a
00:02:43
windfall tax, those EV evil. All companies are making way too
00:02:48
much money and therefore we should definitely tax all of
00:02:51
their most of their profits and I can't seem to get a straight
00:02:55
answer of what happens after that.
00:02:58
Where does that money go? What do we do with it?
00:03:01
But yeah, that's where it sort of all started.
00:03:03
And then we kind of went down the rabbit hole.
00:03:05
And here we are. We have a lot of stuff to cover
00:03:07
tonight. Right Camille.
00:03:08
Yes. Always.
00:03:10
I would like to know what were some of the arguments in your
00:03:13
lawyer chat? For let's see.
00:03:18
One of them was, you know, very scholarly.
00:03:27
In the sense of well, do you even know what a windfall tax
00:03:30
is? Because it doesn't get passed on
00:03:34
to the consumer, okay? That was basically their whole
00:03:40
thing and I was like, sure. Yep.
00:03:42
That's what do they even understand taxes?
00:03:47
I don't, you know, lawyers are not known for understanding
00:03:51
economics but lawyers much like doctors have this sense of like,
00:03:57
well I've gone through all this schooling and I passed this
00:03:59
really hard exam. Therefore I can kind of Master
00:04:05
any subject so lawyers have that sort of ego about them that they
00:04:09
can understand anything. But the truth is a lot of
00:04:12
lawyers. Don't really know a lot about
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economics. So a lot of more you dude.
00:04:16
Are you studying? Yeah, I read a lot.
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I mean, I try to read books on it.
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I tried to read more Austrian economics books.
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I try to, you know, stay up on the news and stuff.
00:04:29
I don't understand, I just kind of look it up, but there's a lot
00:04:32
of people who talk out of there, but when it comes to it and the
00:04:35
fact that their main argument was, well, it's not going to get
00:04:39
passed along to the consumer because that's not how it works.
00:04:43
I'm like really so we should start there.
00:04:47
I guess what? Yeah, we we could start there.
00:04:51
Yeah, let's talk about what a windfall tax is.
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So basically, I'm taking this from Investopedia, which is one
00:04:58
of the more reliable sources when it comes to the, like
00:05:01
economic definitions. And like that, it literally
00:05:04
says, what is a windfall tax? A windfall tax is a tax levied
00:05:08
by governments against certain industries.
00:05:10
When economic conditions, allow those Industries To experience
00:05:14
significantly above average profits, when file taxes are
00:05:17
primarily levied, when companies in the targeted industry that
00:05:21
have benefited most from the economic windfall, most often
00:05:25
kabbani based businesses, does that narrow it down?
00:05:30
Yes, it narrows it down. You probably still going to
00:05:34
explain more, just in case. But, well, lucky for you, the
00:05:38
next paragraph is titled. There's how windfall taxes work,
00:05:43
and there's no trouble for that. There's no drum roll for that.
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We're not hot on the soundboard tonight.
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Oil and gas companies are Comet tart, common targets of windfall
00:05:53
tax. Has the massive net income,
00:05:55
increase for oil and natural gas producers.
00:05:57
The International Energy agency estimates, they will double from
00:06:00
twenty one twenty twenty one to twenty.
00:06:02
Twenty two hitting an unprecedented two trillion.
00:06:06
Dollars is the current trigger for the discussion and recent
00:06:08
position would file taxes. For example, on September 30, 20
00:06:13
22 the Council of the European Union, imposed agreed to impose
00:06:18
a quote temporary solidarity contribution and quote on
00:06:22
businesses in the crude petroleum natural gas, coal and
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Refinery sectors nonprofits that are above a 20 percent.
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Increase in the average yearly taxable profits since 2018.
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And quote, this is on top of whatever taxes they already owe
00:06:37
in their individual countries. In each member State proceeds
00:06:40
are to help. Households and companies and to
00:06:43
ease the effects of high electricity prices and in
00:06:46
October 20, 22, President Biden threatened.
00:06:49
That he would seek a windfall profits on tax and oil or tax on
00:06:53
oil and gas companies, which have reported very high profits
00:06:56
and continue to charge high prices.
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He told them to use their quote outrageous and quote Bonanza.
00:07:03
The effect of the Ukraine war to expand oil supplies or reduce
00:07:06
consumer prices. Okay, I sent you Congress in
00:07:16
March introduced possible tax. So are we going to deal with two
00:07:22
of these? We're going to deal with the
00:07:23
federal one and then a state one.
00:07:25
Maybe possibly. That seems to be the topic du
00:07:29
jour. I think that's the way, and this
00:07:32
is not new. So let's go.
00:07:35
Let's go back in time. Let's go back in the Wayback
00:07:37
machine, right? I think we both read the same
00:07:40
article. By the tax Foundation, correct.
00:07:43
The one station windfall profit tax is still a bad idea.
00:07:47
Yes. This one was actually all the
00:07:52
way back in 2008. So this is not the first time
00:07:56
that they've come up with this idea for a windfall tax and it
00:08:00
is in the toolbox of leftist and Democrats that when oil
00:08:06
companies are making too much money or they believe they're
00:08:08
making too much money. And the prices at the pump, get
00:08:12
a little too high. They start to threaten we're
00:08:14
going to do these windfall taxes which again just taxes on the
00:08:19
profits that they are making. Now we can get into the basic
00:08:24
economics of why that's a bad idea.
00:08:29
But this goes back to 2008, that Barack Obama came up with this
00:08:34
windfall profit tax proposal. He was not the first one and The
00:08:41
article goes on say that oil companies profit margins are not
00:08:44
outside and that companies like Google look, a lot more
00:08:47
unreasonably, profitable than Exxon high oil, prices are a
00:08:52
signal, strong demand and scarce Supply.
00:08:55
And they provide incentive for increased production taxes
00:08:59
discourage production, because they drive a wedge between the
00:09:01
price paid by the consumer and received by the supplier,
00:09:05
windfall profit tax. Also drive up the employee loyal
00:09:08
Imports, because they discriminate against domestic A
00:09:11
coil producers to the benefit of Saudis in the Venezuelans.
00:09:14
So again, harming American oil producers, but it doesn't hurt
00:09:21
Venezuela, who the biding Administration has already
00:09:24
negotiated with, to increase more oil and you want to buy
00:09:28
more oil for Venezuela, combine that with the fact that Russia
00:09:33
were not buying oil from Russia because they're in a war with
00:09:36
Ukraine. We're kind of in this weird
00:09:39
place of we're punishing producers here at home while
00:09:44
also buying more from Markets to supplement and we're also
00:09:49
begging. What was it Saudi Arabia?
00:09:50
Not too long ago. That Biden went over.
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Was a Saudi Arabia. Sure.
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He went over a bag. I think it might have been Saudi
00:10:00
Arabia where he went over and begged them.
00:10:04
It was one of those countries where he begged can.
00:10:06
You please increase oil production because the midterms
00:10:09
are coming up and I want you to make me look good.
00:10:12
The Saudis, I think said no flat-out.
00:10:15
They're not going to produce any more.
00:10:17
All right, when we buy oil from these, well, they come across on
00:10:24
a boat, okay? And that boat is not powered by
00:10:29
unicorns and solar energy. No, No, it's powered by I
00:10:36
believe oil. That's very interesting.
00:10:40
Yeah, so it takes you know oil and it has a carbon footprint to
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get more of that oil over here. I imagine it cost us to pay the
00:10:49
crew and the maintenance of the ships and whatnot to get the oil
00:10:54
and bring it here. I would imagine so, yeah, I
00:10:56
think it probably cost money to pay.
00:11:00
To get people to put it on the boat to take care of it, while
00:11:03
it's on the boat to steer the boat to manage the boat.
00:11:06
And then when it gets here, they have to get it off the boat.
00:11:08
And then it has to go through some sort of Customs, which cost
00:11:11
more Customs workers as opposed to if they're want to just drill
00:11:16
here in California, where there's plenty of oil, wells,
00:11:20
Drilling in America hurts the environment, We can't have that
00:11:25
as long as it hurt, as long as it hurts.
00:11:28
The environment over in, Venezuela doesn't hurt the
00:11:31
environment. Now it but it does hurt the
00:11:34
environment here, and that's all we really care about.
00:11:37
Yeah, so let's go back a little bit more because I want to kind
00:11:43
of really set up where all this came from.
00:11:48
Let me see if I can find the correct.
00:11:54
I know there, we have a lot of Articles, those I think I might
00:12:00
I lost it I have too many just going back to like sort of
00:12:05
through history. Windfall tax is the most
00:12:08
prominent one as I read before started way back in World War
00:12:12
One. And this was a wait, hold on I
00:12:17
think I know where it is. Hold on.
00:12:21
Ah so during World War one before the u.s. entered the war
00:12:24
in 1917 u.s. steel and Dupont annual profits increased more
00:12:28
than a thousand percent each and pressure grew for a war efforts
00:12:31
profit tax instituted in October 1917, the tax raised nearly 7
00:12:37
billion in Revenue annually. 40% of all funds raised for the war
00:12:41
and was the largest source of wartime.
00:12:43
Taxation as large companies, found ways around the tax.
00:12:47
Smaller companies were more affected.
00:12:49
The tax was abolished in 1921. So that was really our first for
00:12:54
Ray as a country. Into windfall taxes with a
00:12:59
myriad of success. The second one, which was not
00:13:07
that successful was during a Jimmy Carter's Administration
00:13:12
back in any 1980. Then President Carter signed
00:13:14
into law, the crude oil windfall profits Tax Act which imposed a
00:13:19
seventy percent excise tax on the amount of an oil sale price
00:13:22
exceeding 12 .81 /, ballon $36 In 2007 dollars who God knows
00:13:29
what it is today and twenty twenty two dollars, the terms of
00:13:33
the new windfall tax or undefined but this has to go
00:13:35
back to Obama and everything like that.
00:13:38
Car is windfall profits. Fell short of its projected
00:13:40
revenues partly because it was discouraged domestic production
00:13:43
and partly because worldwide economic events caused oil
00:13:46
prices to fall sharply during the early 1980s.
00:13:50
According to the Congressional research service, the Carta
00:13:52
error, windfall profit, tax reduced domestic, oil production
00:13:55
by 3 to 6%. And increased foreign oil and
00:13:58
parts by eight to sixteen percent.
00:14:01
So, to your point, where does the other oil come from?
00:14:07
We have to go get it somewhere. If it's not coming from domestic
00:14:11
producers, it has to come from somewhere else.
00:14:16
Yes. And from several countries.
00:14:21
Yes, and we don't care about their environment.
00:14:23
We just care that our environment is okay, we also
00:14:28
import crude oil, I mean I'm sorry.
00:14:31
Export crude oil. Yes I don't touch that also
00:14:36
doesn't make sense to me. That we export crude oil?
00:14:41
Yes. I mean, are we supporting what?
00:14:44
We import, our we exporting, What?
00:14:48
We're getting from our own Wells the way I think it's described
00:14:54
as that, you export it, we export it because it goes onto
00:14:58
like a World Market. Okay, then it gets sold out.
00:15:03
So for example, during the Trump years oil gas was so cheap
00:15:11
because our domestic production was so high.
00:15:13
We were basically flooding the entire world market.
00:15:17
With crude and because there was so much crude thanks to the
00:15:20
United States pumping at full capacity internationally the
00:15:25
price of oil dropped and that's why gasoline ended up being so
00:15:29
cheap was because at the end of the day, the commodity of crude
00:15:32
was so much more cheaper that led to OPEC trying to screw the
00:15:38
United States and put American refineries out of business by
00:15:42
constricting their supply because they're like, okay.
00:15:44
Now we're going to cut our supply to even out the playing
00:15:48
field because America is producing too much oil.
00:15:51
Whole different issue but yeah it does seem like it is
00:15:55
confusing as to why why can we produce stuff here and not just
00:16:03
sorry. It's your pull, your Poltergeist
00:16:05
was back. I guess there's like certain for
00:16:08
words. Go on.
00:16:12
I'm sorry his Trump the trigger word.
00:16:15
You're like looking like the word Trump.
00:16:18
So yeah, that's that's why a lot of people think.
00:16:21
We'll why do we produce it here? I mean, I guess you have to get
00:16:24
into the why the whole oil Market is the way it is.
00:16:28
That's just 0 packing that whole cartel.
00:16:31
But that's a whole different bunch of.
00:16:33
That's a whole bunch of other things that we have to unravel,
00:16:36
not really going to talk about in this episode.
00:16:40
So have we set it up? Well enough, like what a
00:16:42
windfall tax is and whether or not it's had a successful past
00:16:46
or a kind of checkered past. Yes, I feel you went through the
00:16:50
history wall. Okay, so now comes 2022 which is
00:16:57
where We get this special session that was called, by
00:17:03
Gavin Newsom. Because he said in his own words
00:17:06
that oil companies have enjoyed record profits too much that the
00:17:13
time for gouging Californians is over.
00:17:16
He's going to put a stop to it and he's going to stand up for
00:17:18
the average Californians. So they called this special
00:17:21
session because they're going to talk about introducing a
00:17:25
windfall tax. And you actually got a copy of
00:17:27
the proposed language which are going to get into as well.
00:17:31
And this is an Urkel. They talked about it in the like
00:17:44
they have a special session it's available online.
00:17:48
Yeah it's not like either we have any like special Insider
00:17:51
connections. I like handed some calf.
00:17:56
Yeah. Camille's, a very good
00:17:57
researcher but she doesn't like she's not like doing backroom
00:18:01
deals of like, can you give me an advance copy?
00:18:03
That's not even out there yet. No, this isn't like breaking
00:18:06
exclusive news. You can go find this language
00:18:08
yourself gas prices in, California are consistently
00:18:13
higher than the rest of the country.
00:18:15
Thanks to state tax is a cleaner fuel blend and isolated gas
00:18:18
refining market and more. But in September, California.
00:18:21
Prices jump, even higher and that Gap grew wider Governor
00:18:25
Gavin. Newsom pointing the finger at
00:18:26
the gas industry, when he talked to reporters in early October
00:18:29
saying cust the companies were fleecing drivers and called her
00:18:33
a new windfall. Attacks on oil companies, Valero
00:18:36
in international oil company that owns refineries in
00:18:39
California. So it's profits from July to
00:18:41
September Increase. Five hundred percent over the
00:18:43
same period last year in profits on West Coast operations,
00:18:46
increased dramatically in April through June compared to the
00:18:50
same time last year as companies that own the state's largest
00:18:52
refineries and Analysis by consumer Watchdog found.
00:18:57
Then it goes on to talk about what we've already talked about
00:19:01
windfall profit tax is checkered past due.
00:19:06
Don't just try They talked about how in Alaska in 2006, they did
00:19:11
it. But that's because Alaska is
00:19:12
real so much that they can actually afford to do that.
00:19:18
Then I talked about during the wars, just because Alaska drill
00:19:21
so much, should they have a windfall tax imposed on them?
00:19:27
I mean, no yeah I love it. So actually the funny story is
00:19:33
is my college roommate was from Alaska.
00:19:40
And so he would get a twelve hundred dollar check every year.
00:19:44
Okay. Because every citizen of Alaska
00:19:46
would get a twelve hundred dollar check, right?
00:19:50
I don't know, I mean the argument can be made that you
00:19:54
don't even need the tax to begin with but Yeah, he got 1
00:20:01
dollars and he looked forward to it every year because I was like
00:20:04
his little stipend especially when you're a college kid that
00:20:10
just trying to find highlights of this article.
00:20:14
I need to figure out how to highlight on my web pages so
00:20:17
that I can do that. Anyway, okay, so there's not
00:20:21
really much to talk about in this out.
00:20:23
Here we go. So how would all this work?
00:20:26
Details are spare at this point but the basic idea is that
00:20:29
companies that extract produce and refine oil would pay a
00:20:32
higher tax rate on their earnings above, a set amount
00:20:35
each year up. Spokesperson for the governor
00:20:37
said, the money raised by the tax would be sent via refunds to
00:20:40
California taxpayers Impact it by high gas prices.
00:20:44
Said a spokesperson for the governor the logic behind
00:20:47
windfall profit tax is To tax a company at a higher rate when
00:20:51
they're making giant profits, a windfall for some reason, not of
00:20:54
their own making often, there's a moral Dimension to the
00:20:57
thinking, as well. Said, Kirk Stark a tax law,
00:21:00
professor at UCLA theoretically taxing extra high profits, extra
00:21:04
high rate should make companies less likely to capitalize on
00:21:07
circumstances like war and natural disasters to check a
00:21:10
prices like a shopkeeper, who raises the price of all water
00:21:13
from $2 to $4 following hurricane.
00:21:16
There's almost a kind of moral judgment that in some
00:21:18
situations. Asian market prices can be a
00:21:20
moral getting the incentives. Right is tricky, said,
00:21:22
borenstein is is preventing companies from evading the tax.
00:21:26
If, for example, estate taxes, profits of California,
00:21:28
refineries those refineries owned by companies including
00:21:31
Chevron. Valero could start buying oil
00:21:33
from another division of their parent company at higher prices
00:21:36
by doing that, they could reduce their profit.
00:21:39
And if they're no longer making large profits, their tax bill
00:21:41
will go down. So, going back to the the
00:21:48
arguments that these astute lawyers that I was arguing with
00:21:52
maid. that if you impose this profit tax, It's not going to.
00:21:59
It's not like the companies are all of a sudden going to go.
00:22:02
Gee golly. Well, they're going to tax our
00:22:03
profits. I guess we better.
00:22:05
Turn over all that money. It's hard to think that
00:22:10
attorneys are not smart enough to think.
00:22:12
Gee, I'm an attorney, would an eye.
00:22:14
If I were hired by Chevron figure out how to get around
00:22:19
this windfall tax, if I was an accountant, would and I figure
00:22:22
out how to do that for Chevron. If I'm being paid big bucks to
00:22:28
get around the windfall tax. Right.
00:22:32
A great. That would be their job.
00:22:34
I would hope that they would think that way. but I it's sad
00:22:41
to me that they believe this isn't affecting a consumer and
00:22:46
we know that Sorry. I don't think that way that
00:22:52
they're like, well no it's only going to hurt the company that,
00:22:55
you know, we the buyers of gas aren't affected by this.
00:22:58
Yeah. Okay.
00:22:59
Well the one thing that's interesting and you and I have
00:23:03
like I said gone down the rabbit hole and looked at a lot of
00:23:05
Articles and a lot of other information.
00:23:10
The one thing I did not see is a resounding Statement or argument
00:23:16
that. Hey, This does reduce gas
00:23:22
prices. I didn't see any evidence that
00:23:25
it actually does reduce gas prices.
00:23:27
So I guess my question to Gavin Newsom is, is what is your end
00:23:32
goal here in terms of? What do you look to get out of
00:23:36
this? So if you think they're going to
00:23:39
lower prices, well they're not going to lower prices because
00:23:42
you added on a new text In all likelihood.
00:23:47
They're going to what you're going to raise prices because
00:23:50
we're going to pay for that text because that's how that works.
00:23:53
Absolutely. Like they're going to find other
00:23:56
ways to compensate for the fact that they're getting reduced
00:23:59
profits. It's not going to be as simple
00:24:00
as well. They're just going to turn over
00:24:02
all the money. Hold on, pulling up something.
00:24:07
On my phone, I just realized, I haven't been watching the chat
00:24:10
and YouTube this whole time. Anyway, yeah.
00:24:14
And it's not like, is I like they're going to go.
00:24:17
Well, geez, we were really bad. We feel really sorry about
00:24:20
making 500% more profit so therefore, I guess, we'll lower
00:24:24
prices to kind of compensate and do that.
00:24:27
Not that are going to do that. They still have to pay their
00:24:31
workers. They still to pay their
00:24:32
employees, they still have to pay the people who push the
00:24:34
pencils. This Of the pay, the people who
00:24:36
drove for the oil transport the oil and do all that those costs
00:24:40
those fixed costs. Don't change just because you
00:24:43
hire you because you impose a windfall profits tax and it's
00:24:49
not going to budge anything. At the end of the day, you're
00:24:52
not going to go over to your gas station.
00:24:54
Go. Oh, thank God.
00:24:54
They impose this tax because now gas went from $4 a gallon down
00:24:59
to 299, a gal. Like that's not going to happen.
00:25:02
I think that's why. People are, it looks good for
00:25:07
the politicians, but the end of the day, it doesn't really do
00:25:10
anything other than make them look good, right?
00:25:15
So the text in that in the proposed Bill, what is it?
00:25:18
A b x 12. They talk about how then the
00:25:25
consumers will get a check back. I don't know how often were
00:25:29
supposed to get these checks back, but who do you think is
00:25:32
really going to get the checks? These refunds these.
00:25:37
Well, I mean, you know it's not going to be it's going to be
00:25:41
like all these rebate checks. It's certainly not going to be
00:25:46
people with Poltergeist in their house.
00:25:48
Like you, it's going to be it's going to be people below a
00:25:55
certain income level, they'll get $200 or, you know, a direct
00:26:01
deposit. That is a state of California.
00:26:04
$200. Like I mean seriously where are
00:26:07
they going to be taxed on that? Is that going to be taxed?
00:26:09
Like it probably will be taxable income because it's income.
00:26:14
I don't see it as being a non taxable item, but it's going to
00:26:19
be, it's not every California's going to see the benefit of it.
00:26:22
And that's really, you know, we're all gonna pay, huh?
00:26:27
Because the taxes are going to be passed on to us because I
00:26:31
want to wear Chevron would be like oh we don't like making a
00:26:35
profit in one way or another correct.
00:26:38
And that was another argument. One of these astute lawyers made
00:26:41
was well they tax on the profits not on On what, you know, your
00:26:46
internal operating expenses are so therefore they can't pass it
00:26:50
on to the consumer, right? Because you don't think they
00:26:54
know if we go above this certain amount then we're going to pay a
00:26:59
tax and if we go above that certain amount, then we have to
00:27:03
pay this tax and we're not going to make as much money and
00:27:06
profit. So we have to increase and make
00:27:08
more money elsewhere. So it's It's going to be and
00:27:14
this is probably why it has a checkered past.
00:27:16
And why windfall taxes don't really work is because people
00:27:21
are smart enough, accountants are smart enough.
00:27:23
Tax attorneys are smart enough to figure out how to get around
00:27:27
all of this and I wouldn't be and I wouldn't be surprised if
00:27:33
there are some lobbyists as we speak right now for oil and gas
00:27:38
in California and yes they exist.
00:27:41
One of them is Is Kevin newsom's best friend.
00:27:43
Jason Kenney go look them up. They do exist and they do speak
00:27:48
into the ear of a lot of Sacramento politicians so I
00:27:51
would not be surprised if at the if this does ever pass.
00:27:54
There will be enough loopholes for the bigger companies to get
00:27:58
around this, but the smaller refineries will not in those
00:28:02
smaller refineries are going to suffer while the bigger
00:28:05
refineries are going to get away with it and figure out how to
00:28:08
do. Do what they want.
00:28:12
And the smaller refineries were evil, have to go out of business
00:28:15
or leave the state. Yes.
00:28:18
And we're going to get to that in a minute.
00:28:20
Why that is a bad thing, okay? But I want to talk more about
00:28:25
the wording of the actual bill. Again, this is where a
00:28:33
highlighter would have come in handy.
00:28:38
Did you do? 32, I'm trying to find there was
00:28:45
one part of it, that really kind of ticked me off.
00:28:50
From August to October 20 22 California's experience some of
00:28:55
the highest gasoline prices ever.
00:28:58
Recorded in the state even though the price of crude oil,
00:29:02
declined, state taxes and fees remain unchanged and gasoline,
00:29:05
prices did not increase outside the western United States.
00:29:11
Let's just stop right there. Because they already
00:29:16
acknowledged that state, taxes and fees are a big part of why
00:29:20
Californians, do pay more at the pump.
00:29:24
So and combine that with you combine, that, with the fact
00:29:28
that everyone was paying more for the pump because of the
00:29:31
pandemic and restricted supply lines and Supply chains that
00:29:36
would mean by Logic. Logically and I know, logic
00:29:41
doesn't really go that far in California.
00:29:45
That we would still be paying more at the pump because we were
00:29:49
already the most expensive before covid.
00:29:51
We're still the most expensive after covid.
00:29:54
So state taxes and fees remain unchanged and that's one of the
00:29:57
big reasons why California gas is so expensive.
00:30:00
So they're trying to blame why gas is expensive on the
00:30:04
refineries. Once out, kind of saying don't
00:30:08
look at the fact that guy's is really expensive because there's
00:30:10
all these guys taxes and fines and all this stuff in our guy
00:30:13
sets, to be cleaner, Blends and all this stuff, not that,
00:30:18
there's anything wrong cleaner Blends.
00:30:19
I mean, we don't like smog over all of our cities but they don't
00:30:23
acknowledge the fact Hi guys, is already expensive here in
00:30:26
California. They just say, Well, it must be
00:30:29
more expensive than the rest of country because of all these
00:30:31
evil gas companies. Already Shifting the blame.
00:30:39
When? Did Cottle who was it?
00:30:43
When the legislation when did they vote?
00:30:47
On pausing, the gas tax. When did they try to vote on it?
00:30:58
What's that? I don't know if it was that this
00:31:01
year or last year, that was this year.
00:31:04
It was already this year. Minute jam-packed.
00:31:07
Here lawyer. It was this year.
00:31:10
I feel like it was the summer. I don't remember exactly.
00:31:13
Maybe it was me, but they didn't even sit for us and then just
00:31:21
sort of swept under the rug and then they're like, look at all
00:31:24
this, it's the oil companies, forgetting the part where they
00:31:28
could have, you know, suspended it for us for a few months.
00:31:31
Well, because I think at the end of the day, if they, if they did
00:31:36
that, then they would be showing their hand which is they, would
00:31:42
they be afraid that Californians would see if all of a sudden
00:31:46
there guys, dropped 50 cents because the gas tax was
00:31:49
suspended. You don't think a lot of
00:31:52
Californians would go boy. We pay a lot in gas tax, so this
00:31:56
sucks. Maybe we should get rid of the
00:31:58
gas tax entirely. Maybe we're getting taxed too
00:32:00
much. I do.
00:32:03
That's one reason why I don't think they would have supported
00:32:06
it because it does show just how bad the gas tax is.
00:32:12
Yes and Gavin has twice now to different attorney general's.
00:32:17
Ask them to look into open a case on the gas tax in
00:32:21
California. So I buy the gas prices in
00:32:24
California so high. He's had people from attorney
00:32:27
general's, do that and we haven't gotten an answer on
00:32:31
either of them. Yeah, no, no, because again it's
00:32:36
not really about taking care of Californians.
00:32:39
It's about The Virtue signaling just kind of looking through
00:32:48
this language. I'm surprised I got this
00:32:52
together so fast. I read that they only met for
00:32:54
like three minutes, which was pretty incredible.
00:32:58
So they got something for this special session.
00:33:01
Only got together for like three minutes and then it, it convened
00:33:04
for three minutes and then they disbanded.
00:33:06
So okay. Let's see, so it does have
00:33:14
language in here. That talks about the commission,
00:33:17
may impose an administrative civil penalty, for a violation
00:33:19
of subdivision, D, the amount of the penalty shell presumptively
00:33:23
be base set based on the amount of which the refiners gross
00:33:26
gasoline refining margin, excluding the state program
00:33:29
costs exceed the maximum gross gasoline refined margin
00:33:33
converted from barrels to gals and multiplied by the number of
00:33:36
gallons sold by the refinery during the The year as follows
00:33:40
and then it goes blank percent on a mount CERN biorefinery.
00:33:43
That exceeding, maximum gross gasoline refining margins by
00:33:45
less than blank cents per gallon blank percent on amounts earn,
00:33:49
and it just keeps going on and on So that's it.
00:33:55
That's their. That's their whole bill.
00:33:58
Not very long couple Pages. They basically just blame
00:34:01
everything on the gas company and they're going to propose
00:34:06
whatever number. Now that's the tricky.
00:34:09
Part is how much are they going to actually do?
00:34:11
Is it going to be enough to actually penalize them?
00:34:15
Or is it going to be enough to actually get a return on it?
00:34:18
Because it is a tightrope, it's not easy, and a lot of companies
00:34:21
will probably just Close up shop and move out or just stop
00:34:26
working or they'll figure out ways around it.
00:34:28
So, That's going to be the tricky.
00:34:30
Part is figuring out how much. Yeah, I actually do.
00:34:36
I guess we're going to have to wait and say, I want those
00:34:39
numbers actually are Now, why do we hate that companies make
00:34:44
profits. Now, obviously you and I don't
00:34:47
want to be gouged on things, but why why are we so anti?
00:34:53
They make a profit. well, they're anti making a profit
00:35:00
because it's the big bad oil companies and I don't think it's
00:35:05
like that. It's like that tax Foundation
00:35:08
article said. You could make a stronger
00:35:11
argument, that a lot of these tech companies are making
00:35:16
unreasonable much more unreasonable.
00:35:22
Profits than these guys companies, the new I forget now.
00:35:29
I thought also that was the highest profit, maybe I'm wrong.
00:35:40
Probably sorry, when he caught me off guard.
00:35:44
I think it was an Amazon driver or something.
00:35:47
Dropping something off. Yeah.
00:35:51
When you look at Google or Twitter or Facebook, meta,
00:35:56
whatever you want to call it. Now you could look at how much
00:36:00
profit they're making. And you can look at how much
00:36:04
they're actually. I mean, I guess their expenses
00:36:08
because the fact that Elon Musk went in and found tons of people
00:36:12
sitting around doing absolutely nothing shows you that Twitter's
00:36:15
expenses are Definitely not as high as a gas company where they
00:36:21
actually have to pay people to do things, so I can imagine
00:36:25
their profits are much higher. So why aren't we talking about
00:36:27
windfall tax on the tech companies?
00:36:32
Also, why are we not talking about a windfall tax on Jeff
00:36:36
Bezos? Because the windfall tax was
00:36:39
created to kind of discourage. These companies from gouging.
00:36:46
People are making a lot of money in Harsh Times.
00:36:48
Times like war or natural disasters.
00:36:50
Like the example, they don't want to gouge people for water
00:36:55
during a hurricane when they can't get access to clean water
00:36:58
or they don't want to gouge people for generators and stuff
00:37:03
like that. Like that's the whole point of
00:37:04
why you don't want a windfall or you want a windfall gas or
00:37:08
windfall tax. I'm going to get this right the
00:37:10
windfall tax on profits but Jeff Bezos made an enormous sum of
00:37:17
money during the Because everyone was locked inside their
00:37:19
house and I think probably Bernie Sanders probably proposed
00:37:25
that there was, there should be some sort of windfall tax on
00:37:29
Jeff Bezos, but knowing that it's Bernie Sanders.
00:37:34
You probably folded like a cheap suit.
00:37:36
Once it came down to it and actually proposing something.
00:37:41
So it's interesting that they just select the oil company
00:37:44
because it's always been sort of the big bad Boogeyman of the
00:37:47
left is the oil company. They represent everything that
00:37:51
supposedly the left stands against, which is Big
00:37:55
capitalism, corporate greed, fossil fuels, anti-environment
00:38:03
like it's everything that the left hates.
00:38:05
So it's the perfect Boogeyman for them to, sort of go after
00:38:10
and say we're Going to tax you on all of your profits.
00:38:13
But if you're a good billionaire, like, Jeff Bezos,
00:38:17
who pledges he's going to give all of his money away to climate
00:38:21
change. At the end of his life, then you
00:38:24
get a pass, you can make exuberant disgusting profits
00:38:27
every year year over year, you can increase them.
00:38:30
Five hundred percent 1000%, they don't care.
00:38:34
So I don't know if that answered your question.
00:38:36
Or if I just went completely on a rant, I don't you both.
00:38:41
I mean there's no logical answer.
00:38:43
But you gave their work, their logical answer.
00:38:48
Yeah. I mean they're, it's just that
00:38:52
they're picking on the oil companies because it's easy and
00:38:55
California to pick on the oil companies.
00:38:59
But at the end of, you know, gasps is this weird thing in
00:39:03
California and this kind of comes with my thought that like
00:39:08
California Democrats hate poor people.
00:39:12
Because it seems like everything they do is directly.
00:39:19
Has a duration say directly aimed at it, has a direct effect
00:39:23
on those of lower economic status in California.
00:39:28
I mean, the gas tax is probably the biggest one, but that 50
00:39:32
cents per gallon of gas tax makes an enormous difference at
00:39:37
the end of the week when someone has to drive back and forth to
00:39:41
work and how much money they're putting into their tank.
00:39:44
So it's a for some people, it could be the difference between
00:39:50
Are you? Putting gas in your car or are
00:39:54
you putting food on the table or are you paying your electric
00:39:57
bill or you paying for internet? So that your kids can do their
00:40:00
homework. Like that's literally That gas
00:40:05
tax could affect and I probably does affect many many
00:40:09
Californians in our state in California.
00:40:12
Democrats don't care because they're like, oh, it's good for
00:40:14
us, we get a gas tax and we're supposed to be fixing
00:40:17
infrastructure, and this is all good for the environment.
00:40:20
Bring that up actually, talk nuisance was it and dash 1919,
00:40:26
the executive order where he basically took the gas tax funds
00:40:31
that were supposed to be used for infrastructure.
00:40:34
Then he just abuse those funds. And then I think we got taxed
00:40:37
more because I don't remember how much money was allocated
00:40:41
your for the roads and stuff, and then he was like, nope,
00:40:44
gonna take it and use it for something else.
00:40:46
And then I think we got text even more after that.
00:40:50
Which yeah, I mean, you've talked about that many times,
00:40:55
but we're paying more taxes for our governor.
00:41:02
To and our politicians to literally abuse misuse These
00:41:07
funds, like we're paying for paying our politicians to abuse
00:41:10
our money. Mmm, Sign out.
00:41:14
This is why you always look at every proposition and if it
00:41:18
gives them the ability to put money back in the general fund,
00:41:22
just ixnay it right off the bat because if it says we're going
00:41:26
to raise funds for school, plays and music, and all these
00:41:32
wonderful things and then it's like side note.
00:41:35
We also can put it back in the general fund to do whatever we
00:41:38
want, right? There's they dude that tricky
00:41:41
wording even in that one. Maybe.
00:41:43
X 12. It's like this bill will expand
00:41:48
expansion create like several times, which is just meaning,
00:41:56
expand more money for this, create more.
00:42:00
Yeah, it says, all penalties collected on this section less
00:42:03
refunds and reimbursement to the commission for expenses,
00:42:06
incurred on the collection of. But I wonder how much the
00:42:09
commission is going to charge and doing all this, probably a
00:42:12
hefty song. So let's say that, you know,
00:42:16
this windfall tax happens, and that they, you know, want to
00:42:19
give the money back to the people.
00:42:20
How much money, what percentage of it's actually to go back to
00:42:24
the people and even then only some of the people non.
00:42:29
You know, who cares? How much I driver don't drive.
00:42:32
I'm not gonna see a dime of that.
00:42:34
No, because honest, I shall be deposit into the price.
00:42:38
Gouging penalty fun. Yes.
00:42:40
Which they're going to create. That's right.
00:42:44
Yeah, it's a new fund and whether they can borrow out of
00:42:47
that fund left to be, I mean they could have meant that in a
00:42:50
second and get their grimy hands on it which is hereby created in
00:42:55
the State Treasury and upon appropriation by the legislature
00:42:58
shall be returned as refunds to residents of the state.
00:43:03
Okay. Residents citizens.
00:43:07
No, not citizens, residents of the state.
00:43:13
Yeah, so it's you know, they leave the language very fluid so
00:43:19
that at the end of the day, they can do more of what they want
00:43:23
with it, just like the gas tax, like the gas tax supposed to go
00:43:30
in this big infrastructure pot, where I was going to fix all of
00:43:33
our roads and our bridges and everything.
00:43:36
And then, Like you said it started to go to other things
00:43:40
like, pandemic, prevention, and whatever.
00:43:44
Gavin, Newsom just decided under his executive order.
00:43:48
So I can imagine this will probably be.
00:43:50
If this does go into effect, I can imagine this will be
00:43:53
pillaged by politicians just the same way and do the rebates come
00:43:58
back regularly. Like how often are these rebates
00:44:02
going to come back to Citizens? I have the same question.
00:44:07
Is it? Going to be once a year.
00:44:09
Is it going to be twice a year? Is it going to be every quarter
00:44:11
you're going to get a check because it cost try to remember
00:44:16
the number. But even to administer that
00:44:21
Golden State stimulus, whatever that they sent out.
00:44:27
I think it cost like hundreds of millions of dollars to
00:44:30
administer that Yeah, because that's that's how inefficient
00:44:35
the government is that they couldn't figure out how to do
00:44:37
that. For a lot cheaper, right?
00:44:42
Right. Yes, every time we do this, it's
00:44:46
probably going to cost the state hundreds of millions of dollars.
00:44:54
Oh, this makes me sad. Also people could get like two
00:44:59
hundred dollars back. In their direct deposit.
00:45:04
Did did everyone that was supposed to get the gas refund
00:45:09
from this year already? Actually it still work on the
00:45:17
snap. I think I did because it goes
00:45:21
off of your 2021 income and I wasn't we weren't married until
00:45:27
the end of 2021. So I technically qualified Okay,
00:45:32
so we got some money. But can remember yeah, but we
00:45:38
won't see that money to fold up your tank once it's gone.
00:45:42
Yeah, I mean, it didn't really last that long with two cars and
00:45:47
one of them being a big Jeep SUV, good call on our part, you
00:45:50
know, right before a are right during a pandemic, why don't we
00:45:54
buy a big Jeep SUV? That gets like 19 miles to the
00:45:59
gallon, okay. Any other things?
00:46:05
I want to touch upon before we move into top, don't you?
00:46:12
I mean, it's kind of exciting, it's just hilarious because I'm
00:46:15
like, are we is this real life or are we living in a simulation
00:46:19
right now? Because that's what it feels
00:46:20
like. Actually I do want to talk about
00:46:23
this last article. Maybe I'll actually I'll bring
00:46:26
it up because I think it's you you shared this with me.
00:46:34
This is sort of the Fallout of all of this punishment to oil
00:46:42
companies is going to have a direct negative effect on the
00:46:47
California taxpayer. That they're going to push a lot
00:46:54
of these oil companies out of the state.
00:46:58
And what happens is it's a lot of times they just kind of leave
00:47:01
these Wells behind and then who cleans up after them, right?
00:47:10
It says, the price of oil produced in California.
00:47:13
This year reached, its highest level in a decade President.
00:47:16
Joe Biden is releasing millions of barrels of oil, from the
00:47:18
Strategic petroleum Reserve to keep oil.
00:47:20
Prices check, fossil fuel companies, earnings are so high
00:47:24
that Governor Gavin Newsom is called for windfall tax
00:47:27
appropriate. It might seem like a lucrative
00:47:30
time to drill for oil in the Golden State yet.
00:47:32
Some of those largest oil companies, several of which have
00:47:34
done business in the state for the Mana Century are selling
00:47:37
assets and Began to pull out of California, even with strong
00:47:41
cash flow in the short-term producers, have more to gain
00:47:44
from off loading wells in the associate liability, chiefly
00:47:47
expensive, environmental cleanup than from pumping more oil and
00:47:51
gas. Experts say this is the kind of
00:47:53
deal you see when an industry is in its Twilight.
00:47:57
Some industry experts, lawmakers environmentalists are concerned
00:48:00
about the recent deals noting that sales shift environmental
00:48:03
liability from corporate Powerhouse, has two less
00:48:06
capitalized firms, increasing the risk that age.
00:48:08
Ding wells will be left, orphaned unplugged in leaking
00:48:10
oil Brian and climate warming methane.
00:48:13
They see a threat that the state's oil industry could
00:48:15
repeat a pattern seen in other attractive Industries like coal
00:48:18
mining and lead to taxpayers bearing cleanup cost.
00:48:25
So you sent this article to me, do you want to give me the
00:48:26
rundown of it oil? Wells will get abandon someone
00:48:34
has to clean them up. The companies basically went
00:48:37
bankrupt, have no money and it's left on the taxpayers to fund
00:48:41
the process of cleaning. These closing up, capping off.
00:48:47
That's the gist. I go.
00:48:49
That is the test, the basics. This was a shocking number to
00:48:55
me. Super major shell.
00:48:57
And ExxonMobil recently, great to sell more than 23 wells
00:49:00
in California does se&i seems like a lot of wells in
00:49:05
California. There's a there's a list I
00:49:08
actually didn't link you and they there's like 5 that
00:49:16
they believe are about to be abandoned.
00:49:19
That the taxpayers are going to have to be funding the cleanup
00:49:21
for. That's incredible.
00:49:24
And then the number that they said was like 200 something
00:49:28
thousand wells in California. It's a lot of Wells.
00:49:33
Yeah. Imagine, if all those Wells were
00:49:37
like working at full capacity, Now I know they don't all work
00:49:42
at full capacity. Like there's there's plenty of
00:49:45
Wells that just they don't work anymore.
00:49:47
They don't have any gas or oil in them anymore.
00:49:49
It's not gas until it's actually refined.
00:49:53
But man, 23 wells in California.
00:49:55
Sounds like California could have been like the biggest oil
00:49:57
producer in the entire country. I think we were even more than
00:50:04
Texas, it sometime And we could have like super super super
00:50:16
cheap gas here in California like we could.
00:50:21
We could have all the gas produced in California.
00:50:23
Go back to California. Gas stations or again, I keep
00:50:28
screwing this up. We could have all the oil be
00:50:31
refined here in California, and that gasoline could go to gas
00:50:36
stations here in California, and gas here would be like, 99
00:50:39
cents. Dream.
00:50:42
Big dream back. I don't know if it'll ever go
00:50:47
back to that, but that's really what it comes down to.
00:50:52
California has the authority to ask for an additional 30 million
00:50:54
in Financial Security from a single operator.
00:50:56
But only requires era. As one of these companies, that
00:51:00
is like a subsidiary to hold a three million dollar Bond, as a
00:51:04
result eras, bonds, cover, less than a half percent of the 1.1
00:51:09
billion that propublica estimates.
00:51:10
It would cost the state, the plug, the wells based on the
00:51:13
average cost to California for past.
00:51:15
Well, plug in to do alleged Surplus.
00:51:21
That we had, that was Gavin, said, seventy three billion, but
00:51:26
then, it was only like 45 billion but then they've already
00:51:28
used it up. Wasn't a hundred billion.
00:51:32
And now, well, I did see that because there's so many people
00:51:36
leaving California that we're having a state revenue problem.
00:51:40
Where there's just not continue. Like we, I mean, we didn't talk
00:51:43
about the fact that Chevron just sold its headquarters to
00:51:46
downsize, because it's shifting most of its workers, Texas.
00:51:50
And that's going to reduce a lot of.
00:51:53
And so, When they get their windfall tax, what do you think
00:51:58
they're going to do? Either going to stay, they
00:52:01
could, they're already ready to shift Texas or I'm sure they're
00:52:05
going to be like we're leaving. Yeah, there's no point in
00:52:10
staying here where we can go make money somewhere else will
00:52:13
go be appreciated elsewhere. California.
00:52:16
Exactly. So on the so I guess the this is
00:52:21
like the Fallout of the windfall tax because if you're going to
00:52:26
tax their profits and it doesn't make sense to stay here, Excuse
00:52:31
me, these companies are going to leave and this is one of those
00:52:35
unintended consequences of leftist policies is that they
00:52:40
don't see this far ahead and think that companies are just
00:52:43
going to get up and leave. They're going to abandon these
00:52:45
Wells are going to figure out a way through bankruptcy and all
00:52:48
that to take no liability at all.
00:52:50
And the taxpayer will be on the hook for it.
00:52:53
And then, of course, the Vicious Cycle will continue because then
00:52:56
they'll be articles. Written like this one saying.
00:52:58
I'll look at all these guys companies.
00:52:59
Zoil companies that left and we the taxpayers are stuck.
00:53:04
Filling up all their abandoned Wells.
00:53:07
Well now why did they leave? Sorry, I'm just curious how
00:53:13
we're going to be able to afford the required, electric vehicles,
00:53:16
one we're paying for all these closed, clean up oil wells.
00:53:23
I'll give you two guesses but I'll give you one.
00:53:28
I'll give you a hint. I'll give you a hint for one of
00:53:31
the guesses. It's, it's it's taxes.
00:53:35
That's what it's going to be. It's not, it's either taxes, or
00:53:40
they figure out how to make things more efficient in the
00:53:42
government. Which do you think it'll be It's
00:53:46
good, be taxes. It's going to be taxes because
00:53:48
it's always taxes. When at the end of the day,
00:53:51
there's no idea that note there's no tax that passes
00:53:54
through Sacramento, that doesn't sound like a good idea.
00:53:59
Okay. So here's the this is what I
00:54:04
think you were talking about 240 Wells.
00:54:07
Have pierced the state since the late 1800s.
00:54:12
That's a lot of those more than 5, our orphan desert and
00:54:16
potentially deserted Wells. How many deserted 5300?
00:54:23
Okay. Yeah, so there's a really good
00:54:29
book. I think it's Henry hazlitt.
00:54:35
It's either I can never properly, right?
00:54:37
It's like economics in one lesson or something like that.
00:54:41
But look it up that his theory is, basically this whole thing
00:54:45
in a nutshell. We're politicians, don't think
00:54:50
in terms of repercussions and what could possibly happen down
00:54:54
the line. They only think in terms of the
00:54:57
here and now and this will have a lasting impact on the state.
00:55:03
It will have a lasting impact on taxpayers.
00:55:08
It will not help the consumers at the end of the day.
00:55:12
They always think right here. And right now, they don't think
00:55:16
10 steps down the road. They don't think 20 steps down
00:55:19
the road. They only just think right here,
00:55:21
and right now and that's the whole theory of that book.
00:55:24
And this is one of those perfect examples in my opinion that it
00:55:28
sounds good. And, you know, you're going to
00:55:31
score a couple political points so that Can stay in office or
00:55:35
get the praise of Robert Reich from Harvard, but it doesn't
00:55:41
make sense in the real world, and it's going to end up hurting
00:55:44
everyday Californians. So any final thoughts on the gas
00:55:52
tax before we move on to our final lighter topic?
00:55:57
I just want lower taxes. I just want less taxes.
00:56:00
That's my thoughts. I just miss the days where I
00:56:06
first started driving I pull out a crisp ten dollar bill Give it
00:56:11
to the gas station attending. Go fill ER up when you can
00:56:15
actually safely keep $10 in your car for those casts emergencies.
00:56:19
No I don't know what's going to bring to your car, take your ten
00:56:22
dollars and that it would wear. Where did you live that?
00:56:26
They filled up the people that the gas for you.
00:56:29
New Jersey, it's illegal. You can't.
00:56:32
It's the last state in California, organized by state
00:56:35
in the country. I'm so California oriented.
00:56:38
It's not all California, it's the last state in the country
00:56:42
that does not allow you to pump your own gas.
00:56:46
It is a little head and going to the gas station.
00:56:48
They travel size. Instead, we serve ladies, but
00:56:50
those disappeared. By the time I turned 16.
00:56:54
Now later, we're gonna, somebody said somebody said in the chat
00:56:58
organ, they actually just stopped that a couple of years
00:57:01
ago, and a lot of people were very freaked out about the
00:57:04
turnover because they, grown up their whole lives.
00:57:08
Not knowing how to pump gas. And then like one day, they're
00:57:10
like, hey, you gotta pump your own gas and people are like
00:57:14
Well, I remember the first time I had to pump my own gas here in
00:57:18
California. I was like, what do they, what
00:57:20
do I do go, I gotta go talk to someone.
00:57:22
What do I? I gotta get permission to pump
00:57:25
gas but it's going on here, really weird.
00:57:29
But, yeah, in California and New Jersey, why don't you should
00:57:31
come for you and big it? But New Jersey, you still can't
00:57:34
pump your own gas so you pull up and you tell the attendant $10
00:57:40
and back then. This is a foreign concept to me
00:57:53
so I'm curious how it works. Now there's there's plenty of
00:57:56
times when we were sitting in the car with my mom and you
00:58:01
know, the gas pump would go off. You'd hear the click and you can
00:58:04
see that the numbers stop going. Maybe looking around going.
00:58:08
You know? Like where's that where's?
00:58:09
This kid is pumping my gas. Where is he?
00:58:11
Where is he? My mom get very frustrated.
00:58:13
She be like should be huffing and puffing a bit be like 30
00:58:16
seconds or something, but she needs him.
00:58:19
No, you don't tip them. So I it was probably the worst
00:58:24
job in the world to be someone who pumped gas because You
00:58:28
didn't get tips and you have to sit there and smell gasoline all
00:58:32
day, which gasoline like rots your brain scientific.
00:58:35
I remember reading that that like the smell of gasoline
00:58:38
kills, brain cells, so if you work eight-hour days, smelling
00:58:42
gasoline you're not doing yourself any favors, your it's
00:58:46
not like you can do this and then like, go to college like
00:58:49
you're killing more brain cells just working at gas station, but
00:58:53
funny story. This is really off topic before
00:58:55
we get on to Donald Trump's big announcement.
00:58:58
There is this Sunoco in town. Now, mind you my little town of
00:59:04
in New Jersey, real small, rural Town only like less than 10
00:59:09
people. Literally, like one Main Street.
00:59:12
Like, that's where everything went through had three gas
00:59:16
stations, right? In a row, and I don't know why
00:59:18
they needed three gas stations, right in a row for 10.
00:59:22
Not maybe there was so much of a backup that people had to go to
00:59:26
different castes, but there was three right in a row and one of
00:59:30
them had this brilliant idea that I'm going to set myself
00:59:34
apart and even though my gas is the most expensive out of the
00:59:38
three, I'm going to hire hot young girls to pump the gas in
00:59:45
like skimpy clothing. And they got the nickname, the
00:59:51
Sunoco. Go angels.
00:59:54
So you would see the lying during the summer time, was all
00:59:58
at Sunoco to go get gas and the other two gas stations had
01:00:02
nobody. And I'm so so that was the
01:00:10
Sunoco Angels. It was a real thing for a while.
01:00:16
How old are you with this happened?
01:00:20
Well, I just started driving, so I was like 16 or 17.
01:00:27
But just a lesson in capitalism there.
01:00:32
You need to differentiate yourself from the rest of the
01:00:35
crowd. And speaking of differentiating
01:00:37
yourself from the rest of the crowd, if you want to
01:00:41
differentiate yourself as a presidential candidate, There's
01:00:47
one thing you could do and that is, you can sell your, you can
01:00:52
sell your own trading cards, and as of yesterday, the big
01:00:57
announcement from Donald Trump, the big major announcement that
01:01:00
everybody was on the edge of their seat for and tweeting
01:01:02
about Donald Trump at a big announcement.
01:01:06
Is that he's going to sell his own greeting cards or greeting
01:01:10
cards trading cards. Are you ready for this?
01:01:13
Have you watched the video, the video so this will be good.
01:01:17
Okay okay we're going to watch the video and then we're going
01:01:19
to make our comments and then one show there.
01:01:29
Nope. There's no sound assumed God.
01:01:36
Okay, let me try it again. Oh, wait, I know what I did.
01:01:40
I know what I did. There we go.
01:01:46
Start it again. Hello everyone.
01:01:53
This is Donald Trump. Hopefully your favorite
01:01:55
President of all time, better than Lincoln better than
01:01:59
Washington with an important announcement to make.
01:02:01
I'm doing my first official Donald J Trump and ft collection
01:02:05
right here. And right now they're called
01:02:08
Trump digital trading cards. These cards feature, some of the
01:02:12
really incredible artwork pertaining to my life and my
01:02:15
career, it's been very exciting. You can collect your Trump
01:02:18
digital cards. Just like a baseball card or
01:02:22
other Collectibles. Here's one of the best parts.
01:02:25
Each card comes with an automatic chance to win.
01:02:29
Amazing prizes like dinner with me.
01:02:31
I don't know if that's an amazing prize, but it's what we
01:02:33
have or golf with you and a group of your friends at one of
01:02:37
my beautiful golf courses and they are beautiful.
01:02:40
I'm also doing Zoom calls a one-on-one meeting order.
01:02:44
Graphing memorabilia, and so much more with doing a lot.
01:02:48
My official Trump. You don't trading cards or $99
01:02:52
which doesn't sound like very much for what you're getting by
01:02:55
one and you will join a very exclusive Community my
01:02:59
community. And I think it's something
01:03:01
you're going to like and you're going to like it a lot.
01:03:03
They also make perfect gifts, so you can buy them with your
01:03:07
credit card or crypto or you need is an email address.
01:03:11
Go to collect Trump cards.com and by your Trump digital
01:03:16
trading cards right now before they are all gone.
01:03:19
And they will be gone. This is my first official Trump
01:03:23
trading card in Ft collection, and you get a chance to meet me.
01:03:29
Go to collect Trump cards that calm right now and remember,
01:03:34
Christmas is coming at. This makes a great Christmas
01:03:38
gift. No purchase necessary for you.
01:03:42
That might I'm sorry, that might be the most Donald Trump e in.
01:03:51
Nothing in the entire. I mean, it's definitely.
01:03:57
These pictures. Okay, let's just pull up some of
01:04:01
these pictures like this one. Like who said, who sat down?
01:04:07
And they went mr. Trump, I have this idea, we're
01:04:09
gonna, we're gonna take pictures, you take to your face
01:04:15
and we're going to superimpose in Photoshop, it onto a
01:04:19
superhero wrestler body with a American flag.
01:04:24
Like the John Wayne asked one of the most Oh yeah, there's one.
01:04:30
He's at this one. No, Trump.
01:04:34
The cowboy trust. This is Trump on a football
01:04:40
field with 45. He's on the 45 yard line, which
01:04:46
there's no such thing as the 45-yard line in football.
01:04:48
It's the 40 yard line. the Top Gun with sunglasses on, it's
01:04:57
just And the commercial itself is just so trumpian.
01:05:02
So it is the probably your most favorite president ever more
01:05:07
than Lincoln Lincoln was good. But listen.
01:05:10
I'm probably the best. Okay, listen, got to get these,
01:05:15
they're already gone. Actually, they're so they're so
01:05:18
good. I'm being told right now, I'm
01:05:19
filming this commercial they're already gone.
01:05:21
Okay? Don't even bother.
01:05:23
They're so popular. Here's me in an astronaut
01:05:28
costume. Do you like this one?
01:05:30
This is me one small. Step for Trump one.
01:05:34
Giant leap for Trump kind. Okay.
01:05:38
And I don't know. What is it?
01:05:39
What's he supposed to be here? Is he a wrestler?
01:05:41
Is he a superhero? He's a superhero.
01:05:47
He's a wrestling superhero. Candy, people things, when
01:05:54
you're Donald Trump, you can do whatever you want.
01:05:57
Include the astronaut one is also on the now made up 45 yard
01:06:02
line. You can get the Astra on the 45
01:06:07
yard line, you see that like or was that just the way they look.
01:06:11
Like it was on the 45 yard line but maybe it's just 45.
01:06:14
Oh no, it's like a platform. This is 45.
01:06:18
And they gave him a little smirk to they're like here, Trump,
01:06:22
you're going to do a little smirk in this picture with your
01:06:26
glasses on. Like this town of this makes any
01:06:29
sense. He's a cowboy Trump is not a
01:06:31
cowboy. So why would you make Trump a
01:06:33
cowboy? we talked about, And at ease and
01:06:40
the whole purpose of the end of T is that it's supposed to be
01:06:43
what comes with the end of T, which in this case, he talked
01:06:47
about, you're going to get automatically entered to win a
01:06:50
prize. There's different prices
01:06:51
associated with different entities of these and like, did
01:06:56
you read any of that? I actually did read that part.
01:07:00
I have the links open right now. We're like there's one prize
01:07:06
where you have to purchase a minimum of 45 Trump and of teas
01:07:12
and then you're entered to win one ticket to a 2000 person.
01:07:16
President Trump Gala dinner at a location date and time to be
01:07:18
determined by sponsor in its sole discretion.
01:07:21
Okay. The fine print on this though
01:07:23
because 0 then at the end of you notice they're like no purchase
01:07:26
necessary. So I put it on.
01:07:27
I'm like okay so the point of the end of T's now is that you
01:07:31
get entered into the These exclusive sweepstakes, but it
01:07:34
turns out anyone can enter a sweepstakes there's no purchase
01:07:37
necessary. You just have to get a little
01:07:39
index card and a number 10 envelope and hand.
01:07:42
Write it, set it off and your Lodge up to 100 of these entries
01:07:47
and so anyone can enter this. So those of you listening, if
01:07:51
you can't afford this 99 dollar and ft0, go to the website, you
01:07:56
can enter, but then it talks about like, okay, so the golfing
01:07:59
trip and whatnot that you can win.
01:08:02
You have to you get the golfing trip but you have to pay your
01:08:05
way to get there. They're not going to they're not
01:08:08
going to pay for your hotel or not going to pay for your
01:08:10
flight, your Uber, whatever. Like that's all on you.
01:08:14
So you think you could get to Trump?
01:08:16
Yeah, that's a long you and they choose obviously the date of
01:08:19
these events and and if you're not available or he suddenly
01:08:22
becomes an available unavailable, they'll give you a
01:08:26
free and of tea in place of the price.
01:08:31
This is like the again. This is like one of the most
01:08:33
hold on. There was something so confused
01:08:36
about this. There was something like if you
01:08:39
happen to purchase the nft and win the prize to get the prize
01:08:44
you must burn your nft. Okay what does that mean?
01:08:49
It's effectively destroying the token by sending it to an
01:08:52
address that nobody possesses even though the end of T is
01:08:54
still will exist on the blockchain.
01:08:56
There's no way of accessing it therefore it's considered burnt
01:08:59
or removed. From circulation.
01:09:03
So the Assumption collection if you want a prize, they're no
01:09:08
longer have to collect your prize, and now you can't even
01:09:13
trade your tree in Cork. I'm confused.
01:09:19
As you see, I just see Trump in a cowboy hat and go.
01:09:23
What the heck is going on here? Whose idea was this?
01:09:27
How many people actually ran out?
01:09:30
I'm sure there's probably a lot of people who ran out and bought
01:09:32
this, click on that and make it your screensaver, make it your
01:09:36
desktop that I might I'm gonna make it the one where it like
01:09:43
bounces around your screen tear. So you just see Trump in a
01:09:46
cowboy Boy, outfit bouncing around my screen.
01:09:49
The people be like, what is on your screen saver?
01:09:53
All right, so final thought or final opinion, Trump is clearly
01:09:59
the front-runner for the Republicans and 2024 which you
01:10:04
say this is a good move or a bad move on the part of trump.
01:10:11
Define good. Move to find good versus bad.
01:10:16
Do you think this makes him more likely to be voted as president
01:10:20
or less likely people will vote for him as president?
01:10:24
I think it actually is a good enough, okay?
01:10:28
Explain as it is, and I'm laughing at it, everyone's
01:10:32
talking about it. That is true.
01:10:37
No one's like, in fact, I saw a lot of people be like, see Trump
01:10:41
is the front-runner. Trump is the man, like, they're
01:10:44
not people that love. Trump aren't going to be like,
01:10:46
Oh, I'm not going to vote for him because he released a bunch
01:10:48
of these silly and of tease him, being a wrestler and a football
01:10:52
player and a strong Cowboy like there.
01:10:56
I mean, the die-hard Trump fans are like, yeah, he is all those
01:10:59
things anyway. See he's everything, he's the
01:11:02
god, a picture. Him to be.
01:11:05
He's everything to every man. It reminds me a lot of Back in
01:11:11
the Day on Reddit, there was the subreddit called the Donald and
01:11:15
it was all dedicated to like Donald Trump running for
01:11:17
president. And you know a lot of people on
01:11:21
there who would Meme and they put Trump's face on everything.
01:11:25
Yes. So this is what it kind of
01:11:26
reminds me of is like they probably saw all that stuff and
01:11:30
they were like, well, everyone else is putting my face on.
01:11:34
Tough. Why don't I?
01:11:36
Put my face on stuff and I'll make money.
01:11:40
That's probably what Trump was thinking.
01:11:42
I didn't look at this at all. Does this go to his campaign?
01:11:46
Like I said, considered a donation just campaign or 52
01:11:56
when I saw you that is exactly what I was reminded over one day
01:11:58
would put Trump's face on, you know, like bodybuilder bodies.
01:12:02
And yeah. I don't know if it goes too.
01:12:11
him, or if it goes to his I figured it would go to his
01:12:16
campaign, but I think it would have to say something on there
01:12:22
but I didn't look. Like, is there a?
01:12:28
Or he's just making money off of it, which is fine.
01:12:33
People are allowed to make money, just not cancel out to
01:12:35
make money. I'm browsing.
01:12:42
I don't see any like FEC number or anything.
01:12:44
Like that doesn't stand out. So probably not.
01:12:52
Because he could get campaign money from like a lot of big
01:12:55
donors he doesn't really. That's why I thought this was
01:12:57
weird if this was a campaign stunt Because I didn't really
01:13:02
cancel campaign start without it going to the campaign.
01:13:06
I mean, we're talking about, we are talking about it.
01:13:11
Then Trump has been really quiet since this announcement, so he
01:13:14
had his major announcement at Mar-A-Lago Mar-A-Lago, and this.
01:13:19
So, these were his two big announcements.
01:13:24
So far, so which one? - my boy, I'm probably I'm
01:13:30
leaning towards the cowboy, not this one because it's just an
01:13:33
abomination of what football. I mean.
01:13:35
Like, if you're a football fan, you know, there's no such, this
01:13:38
one's pretty cool. The Top Gun one, maybe, maybe
01:13:42
you'll buy one and a bottle by the other one for Christmas.
01:13:45
Maybe is it's related to put this, is it too late to put this
01:13:49
on my Christmas list? The astronauts pretty cool too.
01:13:53
Buzzer sounds so serious. I almost believed, you know, I'm
01:13:58
not buying any of these for $99 and with that sorry.
01:14:06
And with that, I think we'll end the show on a lighter.
01:14:09
What's that it without your sleeve?
01:14:11
You're like with that my eyes are enough.
01:14:16
Looking at Trump On a bodybuilder or as a cowboy or
01:14:20
stuff like that on that will end the show for tonight.
01:14:26
I think we covered a lot tonight that's for sure.
01:14:28
From gas tax. Donald Trump as an astronaut in
01:14:32
a cowboy any final thoughts for the show, Camille.
01:14:39
Not tonight, not tonight. Okay, for everyone who's
01:14:43
listening as I always say before we end the show, make sure if
01:14:45
you like this, the best way to support the show is to just let
01:14:48
somebody else, know, text them message.
01:14:50
Um, send them a trump and ft with a note that says go tune
01:14:56
into California underground. They sent me.
01:14:59
And if you listen on audio, make sure you like share.
01:15:03
Subscribe review. If you're on YouTube, comment
01:15:06
helps the algorithm all that stuff.
01:15:09
And we'll see you after Christmas.
01:15:12
I believe we'll be back after Christmas.
01:15:14
So have a merry Christmas. Happy holidays everybody, and
01:15:18
we'll see you on the next one later.