Another day, another embarrassing display from the legacy media. This time, CNN’s Michael Smerconish found himself completely unprepared for an actual debate, throwing a tantrum and threatening to cut the mic when his leftist talking points crashed headfirst into cold, hard facts.
The trigger? The DOGE Dividend, a game-changing initiative supported by President Trump and spearheaded by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). The plan is simple:
- 20% of taxpayer savings from eliminating government waste goes directly back to the American people
- Another 20% is used to pay down the national debt
Sounds like common sense, right? Well, not if you’re a CNN host desperate to defend wasteful spending, government bloat, and endless handouts to foreign countries.
Smerconish kicked off the interview with James Fishback, the original creator of the DOGE Dividend and CEO of Azoria, by attempting to discredit him for his ties to Trump and Vivek Ramaswamy. Classic CNN move—attack the messenger instead of addressing the message.
But Fishback didn’t flinch. He laid out the facts, explaining that Americans deserve restitution for decades of fraud, waste, and abuse. He exposed absurd spending projects like:
$20 million for “Iraqi Sesame Street”
A transgender opera in Colombia
Millions funneled into foreign aid while American roads and bridges crumble
As Fishback put it:
“Americans sent their money to D.C. to be spent in America—not to be abused, not to be disrespected, and not to be defrauded.”
Smerconish’s response? Deflect, deflect, deflect. He actually tried to argue that funding Sesame Street in Iraq was a great “soft power” investment. Because, apparently, Big Bird is going to defeat terrorism.
Fishback wasn’t having it:
When all else failed, Smerconish pulled out the “we can’t afford it” excuse. That’s rich coming from the same network that cheered on trillions in reckless spending—on Ukraine, climate scams, and handouts for illegal immigrants.
Fishback hit back hard:
“Where was this emergency over the debt when we sent $350 billion to Ukraine? When CNN was pushing for $7,000 per month for migrants in Chicago? But now, suddenly, when President Trump wants to give $5,000 back to hardworking Americans, it’s a problem?”
“Why did CNN support $7,000 per month for illegal migrants in Chicago but opposes a $5,000 DOGE Dividend check for hard-working American taxpayers?”
Good discussing DOGE Dividend with @smerconish this morning 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/5gCOEQNyXb
— James Fishback (@j_fishback) February 22, 2025
At this point, Smerconish completely lost control, repeatedly interrupting, threatening to cut Fishback’s mic, and calling the plan a Ponzi scheme. Funny—wasn’t Ukraine the Ponzi scheme?
The DOGE Dividend isn’t a handout—it’s restitution. It’s giving back stolen money to the people who earned it. And the media can’t handle that.
Smerconish got wrecked, the establishment’s hypocrisy was exposed, and once again, America First is winning.