"President Joe Biden"
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Well, welcome. This is a very, very special, nerve-wracking, odd, unique, incredible episode. This is amazing. And why? Let's just say at the top why, and then I want to get into it. Well, they know, because by this point, they know that the President of the United States is approaching the road. Okay, so talk to me about coming here and getting here.

because I got here an hour earlier because I thought it was going to be massive traffic and blah, blah, blah. And so, and it's, the steps you take to get through with your car was mind-blowing. Well, you also had some flares on your record. You had to get here an hour earlier. Yeah, you did have a few outstanding... They did a bunch of questions for you. Right, right. You had a few things. Will and I just got to roll up, get the mirrors underneath the car, and that was it. And that's it? Yeah.

I had the dog sniffing all parts of me. Oh, no, no. But wait, so no, but the first guy. By the way, one of the guys doing the, this is true, doing the security check on the car says to Jason, like, hey, man, big fan. And then he was just out of earshot. Jason looks at me and goes, nothing for you. Nothing for you. He actually leaned down and looked who was riding shotgun and then just kept walking. No, he didn't. But he said, Jason goes, nothing for you.

And then the guy walked back, and I thought, oh, he's placed the face. He's going to come back and say that. And the guy said, and just keep your windows rolled down going forward. And it was a great moment. It was a great moment. And then the next guy said...

He said to me he was a big fan of Murderville. He didn't say Murderville. He said of your improv. And then he said, oh, and then he looked at me and saw Jason go, I love Ozark. To which I said, is that still on the air? Because it's been a minute, right? And then we approached the woman with the bullhorn out there yelling protests, and she gave me an earful.

So we're at a hotel in Los Angeles because... Well, let's definitely be cagey about it because they're going to come after us now after we've already done it. Two weeks after. No, but I mean just for the future. For the future. It might be a hot spot then. Oh, you think that people can't clue into the fact that the president's here? Yeah.

What gave it away? The beast out parked in the middle of Hill Guard? What are you doing? The 75 trucks outside. Did you guys just come fresh from, were you just lobotomized? From dumb land? You're so nervous. Rise to the moment. I'm up, I'm up, I'm in, I'm in.

Well, this is exciting. The president of the United States is our guest today. Which is absolutely, let's do a small little humble review on what the hell is going on. I mean, when you're a kid and you watch TV and you see, oh my God, there's the president. And then you learn about history and you're like, oh my God. I fast forward to this moment right now. It's kind of mind blowing and I'm very nervous. I was feeling really, really good about us. And then I saw he did an exclusive with Tapper yesterday. And I'm like, well, fucking Tapper got it.

I mean, maybe this isn't that big of a deal. Well, Tapper's a bit of a heat-seeking missile, isn't he? Maybe this isn't as big of a deal. It's kind of huge. No, old Tap Shoes deserves it. No, he doesn't. I mean, he's a friend of the show, but Tapper... But this is undoubtedly... This is ridiculous we have the present. Okay, so can I tell you this? I told my dad...

that we were doing this. Me too. And how'd you do that? What'd you do? Put a message in a bottle and throw it into Lake Michigan? Hoping he drives his powerboat by it? Hoping that one of his kids from his new family picks it up?

Yeah, it's pretty ridiculous. My dad was so impressed, and he was so blown away. There's very few things, and you know, you get to do a lot of cool things in what we do. And my dad was like, when I said, yeah, we're interviewing the president, he said, really?

Like in this way of like, you? Yeah. Like I got to start listening to this now. And I get it. And it is. And who is this? First of all, for you guys, all jokes aside, I wasn't born in this country, but I can appreciate it. But as young, as Americans who have come, this has got to be a great moment for you. Because it is for me. And I'm a new American. But just aside from this podcast, it's like,

I get to meet the president of the United States. Like, it's insane. I mean, it's so crazy. We started this thing as just a completely, you know, remote kind of situation where we stayed in contact and now we are... And try to make Sean feel better because he was so depressed. Exactly. Still working on it. But now we are, for the first time, in person and we're not in our pajamas. I know. We're like in nice clothes. Stuff that needs to be returned by noon tomorrow. I know. Jason...

Jason asked me if I tucked the tags in.

No, but for good reason. For very good reason. Little babies grew up. Oh, guys, tighten up. Tighten up. I think I see some people coming in. Okay. Here we go, guys. All right, listener. Listener, next time we talk to you, we're going to be in the midst. It's still us, but we are going to be acting a little weird because obviously, right? It's... Weirder than right now? Yeah. Can you feel the nervous energy, listener? I'm so sorry. I'm actually really, honestly, truly nervous. Yeah, me too. All right, here we go. All right, let's tighten up and we'll talk to you in a second when... We come back on an all new, very special...

Smart Less. You're making me famous with my granddaughters, guys. I got...

This is wild. This is unbelievable for all of us. So thank you for being here. It's such an honor. Thank you. Oh, no, it's an honor to be on. I mean, what you guys did to lift people's spirits is important. Well, thanks. It's been a tough time. And we're surprised that just our silly little chit chats are making people grin, but

I guess we'll just keep at it because a smile is always worth it, especially nowadays. And we often have a lot of, you know, we started by getting a lot of our friends on here and people who are performers and people who are, and so Sean won't be able to ask his normal question, do you have any great theater stories? I got a lot of great theater. Right? I know Trump. That's the best theater ever.

Oh, Peter. Hey, you know, before we start, I don't have a question. I just want to say a thank you for something. And I have to read a quote that you said almost 10 years ago. And now that you're sitting in front of me and it's such an honor and I'm shaking a little bit. But you said... A lot of that's the sugar. A lot of that's the sugar I ate earlier. You said, I think Will and Grace did more to educate the American public more than almost anything anybody has done so far. And as much as...

By the way, you did. Thank you. And I was sitting on the couch. I nearly fell out of my seat. And it just meant so much to me and a million other people, millions of other people that you recognized us and spoke up for us. So thank you. No question. I just wanted to say thank you. No, no, I didn't think it was a question. But look, I, but it's the truth. You know, people are afraid when they don't know.

And they're frightened of it. And they had images that every gay person in the world or lesbian was an extremist on everything. But it's like... We're just as boring as everybody else. That's true, by the way. Look at that zip-up cardigan there. Often more. Often far more boring. No, no, but think about it. The first, you made it clear that

Gay person's interest and life is not any fundamentally different. I mean, they have the same...

fears, concerns, ambitions, likes. I mean, it's normal. Yeah, and thank you for giving us the same rights as everybody else. Speaking of Sean, you clearly, you stated your love for Will and Grace. Now that makes me think, what other television shows are you able to watch now that you've got a fairly busy job? Is there any TV time for you? Well, the honest to God truth is, it's a joke among my granddaughters who, very little, um,

When I have time on television, what I tend to do is I tend to watch sports or watch the news. And by the way, I don't work harder and a lot of people work a hell of a lot harder than I do. I don't know about that. But there's just not that many hours. You know what I mean? Yeah. But I wanted to, because we're not bright enough to ask you really smart questions. I've really, I'm really, I'm such a big fan of you as just, obviously we've never met before. Although I did shake your hand on a school trip in ninth grade in Delaware and you were very nice. But.

But I want to know. Expand on that. I want to know. You've been since. You were so sweet for a class. But like, what time does the day wrap up for you? What, what, what, you go upstairs. You want to know bedtime. Well, I want to know what goes on. Well, my staff is laughing. They're behind me. But when you go upstairs, you're not lounging around in that. Is there a transition into, I'm asking because I'm projecting because I get in my PJs as soon as I get home. You get into the PJs, you let them know what you want for dinner, and then you start watching TV with Jill?

Is that what happens? That's one of the things Jill and I are working out. And I mean this sincerely. Yeah. Jill, because she teaches full time, is in bed by 930. And I used to go to bed 930, 10 o'clock. And we'd talk and people would go to sleep. I mean, we spent time together. But now I don't get back to my, even in the White House, I don't get from the Oval Office into office.

in the residence until usually around 7 o'clock. We have dinner, and then I have, and I'm not a complaint. I give my word, but I have a briefing book that is probably 200 pages. Yeah. I mean, a big binder like that. Yeah, mine has two pages in it, and they're all doodles. No, but worst part, you guys got to memorize your lines. But all kidding aside, so I usually get in bed around 11 o'clock.

Oh, wow. Jill gets up at 6.30 and goes, works out. I get up at 8 o'clock and work out. But wait, I want to know, I want to know though, when you, is there a time that when you, exercising with Jill, is there a time where you guys can go away and shut it off and just be like...

Yeah, because... Well, we just have to do it because she'd worked so long as well. So we just set time and I tell Annie, who runs the show for me and my chief of staff, I'm not doing anything. And so Jill and I... But they're getting...

further apart, I mean, in the sense of, but usually we try to do that. We go to Camp David or go back to our house in Delaware, which is secluded enough off the road that we just, you know. And can you really not think about work and you really kind of calm down? Is it always there? Yeah, no, well, there's certain things that, I mean, like with the war in Ukraine,

There's a lot of really difficult... You've got to stay available. Sure. But no, I'm always available. Do they try to protect you? Obviously, weekends are not off, but you get to go to church on Sundays or you get to have a little sports time. My worst part is they kid me and everybody kids me. I'm...

I'm one of those practicing Catholics. My mother would come down from heaven if I didn't. But I go to, I don't tell everybody because they'll beat it, but I go to 5 o'clock mass in my local church. Or I go to, in Washington, I go over to Georgetown, the Jebbies. And I go to, there's a 5, well, there's a 430 mass.

And I go to Mass on Saturday. Yeah. And then Sunday, we just try to do nothing. Yeah. That's great. That's pretty good. I think you have to. You watch a football game or something like that, perhaps. Yeah. What's your number one sport, if you had to rank them, that you like to watch? My number one sport is football, but it's changed so much. I was a relatively good ball player. What position? I was a flanker back, a halfback. Really? I like flank state. Yeah.

I'm just saying. Don't pay any attention. You're just saying word association? Yeah, I'm just saying word association. It's a sport that I watch probably more than any other. You're not a terrible golfer. I looked up your index. I used to be pretty good. I haven't played golf, though, in three years. Your current index is a 6-7, I believe, which puts you at about a 12, a handicap. What is the best part of your golf game? Off the tee, chipping, putting? Off the tee. Off the tee. Yeah, of course it is. Do you hit it far?

Well, yeah, three years ago I did. I haven't played much. Yeah, I love it. We added up. They figured out that I try to, when I'm home in Delaware, there's a place I can go where I can play. It's a private club. It's called Fieldstone. But I play, all it is is golf, and I get in.

I've not played 18 holes lately. I've nine holes and-- - I'm with you on that. We play a lot, Jason and I play a lot of golf and it's-- - Will's big thing is he thinks golf should be 12 holes long. - I think it should be 12 holes. I think it should be six and six. I think that would be perfect. - By the way, there's a lot of national debate about that. - Is there really? - Yeah, there is about-- - Do you want to appoint me the golf star? - Just because he falls apart at 12 usually. He falls apart on the 12th hole and he just starts whining. - I'm 52 and I'm tired and I like to spend time with my kids. - You need to work on your game. - By the way, that's my best recreation.

My granddaughters, they're crazy about me. No, you think I'm kidding. Every single day, I contact every one of my grandchildren. All right, you got to pick one of these three things as the coolest thing about being the man. Is it the White House? Is it Air Force One? Or is it the Beast?

Which you can only, you can only. You don't mean Marshawn Lynch. I do not. I'm talking about the car. Okay. Which, which, which is, which, which. Air Force One. It's Air Force One. It's gotta be Air Force One. Yeah, it's gotta be, right? Well, the good news is the plane never leaves until I get there now. Do you always get the seat you want? Do you always get the seat you want? Or is there sometimes there's someone in it

And you got to go to the back. I would love to see the inside of Air Force One. Sean, I'll take you through it for you. I would go crazy. God, that was so dripping with begging for an invite. No, I'm serious. I have no shame. Sean, I thought you were going to say, I'd love to do a Will and Grace reunion on Air Force One. And we will be right back. All right, back to the show. Okay, so...

People in this country never before has it felt like-- And I look back, you know, I spend a little bit of time looking back over the way that people spoke and politicians spoke, et cetera, especially in the 20th century, and a lot of the same verbiage was used to scare people, to make-- put people-- to divide people. And it was-- And people say, "Well, no, this is new." Historically, that has been something. But never before has it seemed like common ground was so far off in the distance. And I'm trying to understand why, because

We all share... I had an experience recently where I spent some time with somebody and I didn't find out till later that their perspective on the world was very different from mine. But when he and I...

were speaking and hanging out one-on-one, we got along very fine. And I thought, "Wow, isn't that funny?" If I didn't know anything about his politics, he and I got along great. What is it we can do to try to get that back? 'Cause I think that that's something you talk about a lot. Well, I do look, guys.

I had no intention of running for president again, for real. Yeah. Or running for office. I was a professor at the University of Pennsylvania, enjoying it, and put together an institute up there. And when those folks came out of the fields, literally carrying torches down in Charlottesville, and the last guy said, there are good people on both sides, and that young woman was killed, I realized that we are at an inflection point in history.

And it occurs every three, five, seven generations that what happens in the near term, in this case, the next two to three, five years, the last several years, is going to determine what it looks like for the next several generations. And the context was my son had just died recently.

And so we have a tradition in our family. Anyone in the family, any kid can ask for a family meeting. This is dead serious. I'm not joking about this. As well as my dad's family when I was growing up. And so I got a call from my oldest granddaughter and saying, Pop, we want to have a family meeting. She was a freshman in high school.

either a senior at Penn or a freshman at Columbia Law. And then my other granddaughter, Finnegan Biden, she's a brilliant kid. She's a wonderful kid. She's my secret weapon. She was, I think, a sophomore at Penn. Anyway. A couple of dummies, huh? No, I don't mean that. I meant they were close to me. Right, right. In my house. Gotcha.

And then I had another granddaughter who was a senior in high school, and then a granddaughter who was a sophomore in high school, and a grandson who was, I think, in seventh or eighth grade. And they came in, and they sat down, and they said, Pop, you really should run. And I didn't want to run because I knew it was going to be ugly.

And keep in mind, just like your children in show business, what with your show business, they get used to the barbs. They get used to the accolades. And so they've been their whole life. I'd either been a vice president or a senator and their dad or uncle had been attorney general and so on.

And so they said, you got to run, Pop. They called me Pop. They said, Pop, Uncle Bone wants you to run. Daddy wants you to run, et cetera. And I said, well, it's not going to be very nice, honey. And my little guy, little Hunter, he's now 16 years old, wonderful kid. He took out his cell phone. He said, here's a picture, Pop. We know. And he showed me a picture. My wife hates me telling this story, but it's true.

And it was a picture was me walking out of the cathedral with my hand on my son's flag-draped coffin, the military escort, and my arm around him like I used to hold his dad to just reassure him we're walking out. And the caption at the bottom said that Biden molests another child. And they said, we know it's going to be tough. But here's the point about your question.

I think the biggest thing that's changed is technology. There are no editors anymore. And so, you know, there's a lot been written, and I started to write a book about it, but I don't obviously have time to do it now, that if you go all the way back to Gutenberg and the printing press, it changed the nature of the world and how nations got along. These guys have never read a book, so just keep going. No, well, I know, but look, look, I'm getting a television. LAUGHTER

But think about how things have changed. And every new technological change, it changed the way we interface with one another. Whether it was a telegraph or the radio or then television. But now, the internet, for the first time, there's no editors. There's no editors at all. And so how does somebody know what is true? Yeah, and the difference between, you know, I think that...

You should do an executive order where you could do, you can post on the internet, on social media, but you have to have your name, your address, and your phone number. And then we'll see if people change their tone a little bit. Isn't there any way for the FCC or someone to put a rating system or the equivalent of saying, this is just opinion, this is actually facts? Oh, you've wanted this for a long time. Like you should be able to have to hit a certain threshold. You can't just, everything can't look,

It should have a little qualified, Twitter does it or did it with the last guy's tweets? - I mean, we live in an age where people decided to start politicizing science and medicine that is so absurd. And you go, you know, I'm originally Canadian and I go back to Canada. I am American now, sir.

If I defect, I'm going to Canada. Yeah, well, listen, you can stay with my phone. I'll drive you. Jim and Alex will take you any day. But that idea that, like, how... It's absurd. How are we politicizing this stuff that we used to take as...

Well, look, that's true. And if you notice the generic polling about the American public, 40, 50, 60 percent are worried about the survival of democracy. But it's not just here. It's all around the world. This notion of democracy, can it be sustained?

but I'm optimistic and I really am. - I love that. - No, but I genuinely am because this younger generation, the ones you speak to up to, I said up to 30 when I talk about the younger generation. - Yeah. - No, I'm not being facetious. I'm being deadly earnest. Is the best educated,

the most open, the least prejudiced, the most giving generation in American history. And we're going to break through this. We really, truly are. And you think about the things that, how ugly things have gotten, but think about how much we've gotten done. I mean, did, you know, when I ran, I said I was running for three reasons, to restore the soul of America,

to rebuild the middle class, and because when the economy is built from the middle out, the poor do have a road up and the wealthy still do very well, and to unite the country.

The third part's being the hardest because I went through my career as being the guy who got a lot done with Democrats and Republicans for all those years I was in the Senate. Hell, I was there for 36. You were 29 when you became a senator. Yeah, and what got me involved was the...

I came from a state to its great shame, was segregated by law. And we have the eighth largest black population in America. And I was really moved by the civil rights movement as a kid. And I remember we moved down from Scranton, Pennsylvania when coal died. My dad was not a coal miner, but he was a salesperson. And we moved back to this little town called Claymont, Delaware. And it used to be a big steel town.

And we lived in what became projects, but at the time they were apartment complexes that were modest compared to where we had lived. And I went to a little Catholic school called Holy Rosary and it was across the street from the fire station there. And I remember my mom used to drive us up to school. I was in third grade and drop us in the parking lot to go into school.

And I see this bus go by all the time with only, then we refer to it as colored, but black children in it. I didn't understand it. Because they didn't know there were hardly any black people in Scranton. And what was that all about? I said, well, they're not allowed to go to school, honey. They're not allowed to go to the public schools here.

And then I ended up being the only white employee in the east side of Wilmington, which is 98% African-American. I was a lifeguard there. Then I got involved. And that's what got me engaged. So that was very inspiring for you. Well, it was. It also was very angry. I mean, it made me angry, too.

And like a lot of folks my generation. And I never, I love reading how I knew I was going to run for president. I wouldn't even, I wasn't even old enough. I mean, I'll never forget. I got really involved trying to bring the Democratic Party in Delaware into the mainstream of Northeastern Democrats. It was more of Southern Democratic Party.

Yeah. Yeah. You're a Southern part of my state to Delmarva Peninsula. Talk cats like it's a lot of, it's just very Southern for real. It's right at the Mason Dixon line, right? Yeah. As it actually goes North South, most people don't realize that, but yes, it is. And the end, the end result of all that was that I got involved. I, I was a young lawyer. I went to law school and I went to work for a guy who was a local, uh, he was a state rep. Uh, he was a great trial lawyer. And, uh,

And one thing led to another, and they tried to reform the Democratic Party to make it more, I mean, the Republican Party was more liberal than the Democratic Party at the time, was a rock of all Republicans. Anyway, to make a long story not quite so long and boring, I was asked to help put together a group of young people to get someone to run for the United States Senate. And I kept working on it, and I went to an off-year convention in Dover, you know, the Democratic Convention. Yeah.

And I was it was between the evening, the afternoon and evening session. And I was in a motel, small motel down there, shaven. And I was in the bathroom and I had a towel on and shaving cream and I was banging the door. And I opened the door and there's four leading Democrats, two of which I'd never met before. Two former governors and a state chairman and a head of the Supreme Court who had retired and family, more senators than any family in American history, the Tunnels.

And I was stumped. I thought it was the guys I drove down with. I was 27, 28 years old. And they said, we got to talk to you, Joe. We just had a dinner together. And I said, okay, gentlemen. I walked in and

Quickly got in the bathroom thinking there was a towel. I all had a towel. Wiped the shaving cream on my face, came out. You know, those desks that are nailed to the wall, headboards nailed. And I'm leaning against the desk. And they said, Joe, we were thinking you should run for the Senate. I said, oh. You said, can I get dressed? No, no. No, I'm serious. It's a true story. And the chief justice, the former justice said, I said, I'm not old enough, sir.

He said, "You obviously didn't do well in constitutional law, Joe." He said, "You don't have to be 30 to get elected. You have to be 30 to be sworn in." And I remember going home and I don't know if you guys ever did this, but I had a great professor in college. - No, they never did. No, no, no. - No, but I mean, there was a guy that I wasn't a good student either. If you're implying they weren't. - No, no, no. No, they weren't students at all.

But here's the point. I'm riding home and I stopped at the University of Delaware the next day. I had a professor named David Ingersoll. He was my political philosophy professor. And I said, they just asked me, this is crazy. And he looked at me and said, Joe, remember what Plato said? And I'm thinking, what the hell did Plato say? And he

And he said, "The priority is the penalty good people pay for not being involved in politics is being governed by people worse than themselves." - Yeah. - And it was the middle of Vietnam War and a lot of other things going on. One thing led to another. - Also the penalty for not voting. - Yeah. - I used to play with Play-Doh as a kid. - Yeah. - See, I told you. By the way, I wasn't a good student either. This is just an inside joke to torture them. - Mr. President, so your ability to, as you always have, cross the aisle and

and broker these, these great agreements. If, if, uh, somebody who was, uh, what would you say you were 29 at the time, 29 now coming into politics with how dynamic this political culture is, uh, and the necessity, the, the, the, the vital that we, we come across the aisle to, to one another, what would you suggest to them? What, what's the, what's the secret sauce to be able to do that? How do you identify things that both sides can get excited about? You know, uh,

Because I got elected so young, everybody thought there had to be some secret sauce I had. There must have been something. And so I've had, that's about everybody's ever sought the office of the senator, governor, a young person in the last 40 years of the company, said, you know, what is it? And I say the same thing, and I mean it from the bottom of my heart. I said, figure out what are you willing to lose over or don't get involved?

Because if you don't know what you're willing to lose over and have something that important to you, don't get engaged. Don't get involved running because it can make a lot of money and do a lot better doing other things than being in politics. And so one of the things that does is that, you know, there's a joke among my colleagues when I said it. No one ever doubts I mean what I say. The problem is I sometimes say all that I mean. We'll be right back. And now back to the show.

Uh, Mr. President, we, this is, you know, we're, we're, we're not qualified or smart enough to ask you, uh, great questions. So what we would like to do, I'd love, I would love to know just some of the, just the simple sort of human stuff. I want to know, uh, to the extent you're comfortable telling us, like, just like the dumb stuff in your life. You want to know his personal stuff? Yeah. He's a person. What time, what time do you get up most mornings and do you use an alarm clock? Uh,

I get a staff call. I have an alarm, but they don't trust that. So my routine is there's a great guy who used to be a physical therapist at the White House. Now he comes in. What do you mean he comes in? He comes in and he gently rocks you? No, he doesn't rock me. I tell you what, he works me when I go up. There's a gym upstairs. He gently rocks you.

- What was your search? - So, eight o'clock. I'm up at seven, 7:15. I go up and work out from eight until quarter to nine. - And what are we doing up there? We blasting back and bys on Tuesdays and Thursdays? - Yes, as a matter of fact. - Really? - Wow, I love it. - You look like you're in great shape. - Well, I feel good. I feel good. The thing I learned, the difference in age,

If I let it go for a week, I feel it. I know. Again, he's looking at you, Sean. Go ahead. Wait. I used to be able to go for a week and nothing would change. No, it's true, though. It's not serious.

Believe me, we're all over 50 and we talk about it all the time, how much harder it is getting on top of it now. What's your kryptonite? If something's in front of you, it's going to get eaten. I know what it is. Is it sugar? Is it french fries? Oh, I know what it is. Hang on, hang on. I know what it is. It's the same thing I love. It's ice cream.

And I'm gonna and we shot a chip. Oh boy. That's what I'm a ice cream I was dull as hell. I'm known for my Ray-Ban sunglasses and chocolate chip I wanted to sell over so I wanted to also say that the Ray-Bans Yeah, I mean the this is the greatest look of a president that all president is the coolest guy in the world Yeah, of course. We're Ray-Bans. Yes, you are By the way all those years when I ran for the first time for the Senate I had I had been up to that point even though I was a practicing lawyer and

In order to get free rent, there was a country swimming club that had 17 acres, a little tiny house on it.

And they let us live in the house as long as I would hire all the pool people. Sure. But from the time I was 16 years old, it was a lifeguard. That's all I ever did. So the headline was, you don't want this guy. The only job he's ever had is a lifeguard. By the way, I'm like, yeah, he's like ripped and painted and wearing sunglasses. By the way, the guy before you, he didn't even need sunglasses. He would just look at an eclipse. I want to know, first of all...

First of all, there's no reason coconut should ever be an ice cream. I just wanted to say that. I like coconut. Yeah, I like coconut ice cream. Well, coconut pie is fine, but not an ice cream. I can't do the ice cream. I'm a simple plain boy. More for us. Anyway, here's the thing. I want to know about suits. How many suits? Yeah, I had the same question. You only need like two or three. Who's picking the suit in the morning? Me. Really? So you've got a big closet. No, I have... I guess I have a... I have...

Less than 100 or more than 100? I have probably less than 15. Less than 15. More than 14. But a lot of ties. A lot of ties. A lot of ties. You can get sassy with the ties. Do you choose tie too? Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. No, Jill doesn't. Does Jill ever give you the hairy eyeball? Like, no, please. What are you doing with that? Well, she is if I'm not mistaken.

I'm sure you must mean Mrs. Biden. Oh, Jill's fine. The first lady. The first lady. Jill's fine. Joe's fine. All kidding aside. Very nice. No, no. But she gets very upset if I have not...

fully shaven or all this excessive amount of hair I have. You know what I mean? What do you do with it? I know how you feel. We suffer from the same problem. No, wait. I want to get back to just one second. Back to ice cream. No. No, you've obviously accomplished so many, so many amazing things

in your presidency so far, one of which is the Inflation Reduction Act, which I was excited about because of global warming, because I hate the heat. I want the temperatures to go down. When it's hot, I get irritable. What's that got to do with inflation? Oh, my God. No, it's inside the Inflation Reduction Act. It's the global warming thing. But is the ship sailed on fixing this climate thing? Like, is there anything we can do? Oh, you mean should we just give up? No. You have to give up.

You asking the rest of the place? No, I meant like what's...

Is there any hope? There's a lot of hope. Okay, good. There's a lot of hope because two things. For example, I'm out here today with Congresswoman Bass, Karen Bass, and I go over. They have a rapid transition here that needs a lot of work. Well, we're going to spend $9 billion making a change. But here's the deal. It's estimated to take 124,000 tons out of the air. Let me back up.

If people have a chance to get on a track train and can make it quicker than they can driving their car, they take the train. Never any traffic. And I'm a big train guy. And we've gotten billions of dollars more. We're spending more on Amtrak than Amtrak initially was spent. And it's all just getting underway. But it's fundamental changes that are going to be taking place. Yeah.

And it really does work, too. I noticed during COVID when everyone was having to stay inside here in L.A., the skies were, in a week, they were crystal clear. It really does work. I thought you were going to say, I noticed, too, that the roads were really empty and I could just bomb around. No. No.

But they were. They air out here, as you know, historically. Oh, I know. And this is going to be a game changer. Yeah, I'm so excited about it. By the way, in addition to the $368 billion for climate in that bill, we also have over $1,200,000,000,000 that we got passed in the act having to do with

dealing with the infrastructure. We used to rank number one in the world in infrastructure. We're number 13, for God's sake. Yeah, of course. And this is a lot of jobs. A lot of jobs. Literally, we've created more jobs in the first 18 months than any present history, 700,000 manufacturing jobs. Where the hell does it say America can't be the manufacturing capital of the world? Yeah, everyone's saying manufacturing's gone now and all that. No, you're wrong.

Wrong, wrong, wrong. Yeah, and it is a little shocking that how much of that has been lost, and it does fill me with hope with the idea that we can get manufacturing back. Well, you know why it got lost? We used to spend...

2% of our GDP on research and development as a nation. We're down to 0.7%. China's past, other countries are passing us by. But now we're going back to, look, my major goal in terms of the economy is

was to change the dynamic of trickle-down economy to building from the middle out, bottom up, and do it that way. Right, yeah. And I know I get criticized, and understandable, for being, quote, the most pro-union president in history. Well, the reason for that is these union folks, everybody thinks you show up and on a job and you can be a technician. Guess what? You take four or five years, it's like going back to college. It's like going to school. They're the best in the world. They're the best in the world. Yeah.

and they're only as cheaper for it. So there's a lot we're doing. And for example, we're going to invest literally several hundred billion dollars in building chips or computing. We invented them. We invented them. It's so important. So anyway. Trickle down economics. I want to like go find a billionaire and give him 10 grand because I know it'll get to the little guy.

I've got a fairly adult question here, so I've written it out. I apologize for reading. Well, we'll judge if it's adult. With the midterms on our doorstep.

Two-thirds of the seats that are up for grabs in the midterms are trending to be won by admitted election deniers. And then that means that elections and consequently democracy as a form of government will most likely be done away with or could be seriously threatened. This is what they're saying that their plan is once elected. So doesn't that current real forecast, even declaration, justify some kind of emergency alert?

that asks for maximum attention and participation from every single voter in America. No advocation for a Republican or Democrat, just a request to vote in this midterm election. Could I ask you to commit to consider over the next few days using your unique powers, President, to utilize the emergency alert system? For the listener, this is the system that's in place to alert citizens of impending danger. Yes, it's usually for the weather or killers or kidnapping, whatever. But I

I don't think it's an exaggeration to categorize this as a light crisis, an existential threat. Just ask the families of the COVID victims what danger is with poor leadership or the citizens of Russia or Ukraine, what happens when the electoral process is merely a facade. So our TV and radio outlets are required to deliver presidential alerts. And all this would be to simply to air once a night leading up to election day on every TV, satellite, and cable channel, a quick 10-second card.

that just simply says, please vote on November 8th. That's all. That is a great idea. Is there any way you would consider? First of all, great idea, and also officially with the president, the longest Bateman question ever, simultaneously, and it's a great idea. No, but I understand. By the way, the point you're making is the point.

People have to vote. And look, you saw, I mean, the best example is the Supreme Court in the Dobbs decision said, there's a line from one of the justices saying, women have a right to vote. We'll see it. But basically, we'll see if they do. You saw what happened in Tennessee. Yeah.

Women showed up and vote. Women are out registering men for the first time significantly for this new election. And that was immediate, wasn't it? That was immediate. And so my generic point is I think people, particularly younger people, that's what I'm spending most of my time trying to focus on, people under 30, they in fact understand the vote matters. What I worry about

I worry about the states that have the election deniers in them making it harder practically for them to vote. That's what I worry about the Supreme Court decisions on voting that are coming down, that are going to be coming down. And so, but voting...

Vote, vote, vote. That's been my, I end all my speeches, everything I talk about. For me to do what you're suggesting, I imagine it would end up being a gigantic fight whether I was using an emergency system designed to save, quote, lives for political purposes. That's not. No, it's not. It's not for Republican or Democrat. It's just participate in the American process of voting. Just a quick 10 second, boo.

Well, guess what? Well, it's great, but guess what? The whole idea is the other team doesn't want people to vote. They don't want open voting. They don't want to be able to mail in ballots. But they got to do what the president says, at least until, while you're still president, you could put that little card up there, get everybody voting, and save our elections. Well, we're paying to try to put that card up. It'd make a great movie, wouldn't it? Thank you, actor Jason Bateman. Hey, um...

Can I just say... I'm serious, Jay, you're right. No, he's a great... By the way, it's a great idea and I really like that. I think that that's pretty awesome and it would be a good use of it. But I think you're right. It would be hijacked, if you will, by people who would think that you were... Well, they should do it when they're in charge too. I mean, it's just a vote. I just want to say, Mr. President, what's crazy for us is we started this podcast in the middle of COVID when everybody else was locked down and we were too.

And for us, it was a way to connect. We've been friends for 20 years. I get to do it with these two guys that I love a lot and who are my best friends. And we just started. We didn't know where we were going. It gives us a lot of joy to know that it gave people, that it uplifted people and made people feel more confident or made people feel more positive in a tough time. You gave them hope. Look, guys, two things are going to go down in history. Number one.

More than a million people died. A million people died. And the estimates are those million people had nine close related people, whether they're family or otherwise. The psychological impact on the nation has been profound, absolutely profound. And the other thing is the whole idea that we're moving... Think about this.

graduating from when you graduated from high school, you had your prom, you had the graduation ceremonies. What do these kids have? The kids are graduating. What are the things that they, in fact, missed that are consequential?

That junior prom, that senior prom, that graduation ceremony, all those parties. I mean, it's like the difference. Everybody asks me, what was the most exciting thing when you got elected and so on? You know, I was really honored to be voted. I mean, the greatest honor in the world, okay? But...

There was no celebration about it. You were having to do rallies with cars honking. No, but I mean it. And that's not who we are. And the other thing people have to remember, our strength lies in our incredible diversity.

It's incredible. Absolutely. Incredible. Absolutely. And other nations are realizing that that's why they want to invest here. That's why they want to get engaged here. Or come here for education. Exactly right. Yeah. And so there's so much. And by the way, I'm convinced we're going to be able to do a hell of a lot.

I love that. Me too. And I got to tell you, during a time, I can speak for me, during a time that felt really hopeless and dark, and it felt like a number of years where the sentiment of the nation was quite dark, Mr. President, you brought a lot of light. You did bring a lot of hope to a lot of people. We fed on that. Common sense. And common sense. And I thank you so much for that. I think that you were able to light a torch for all of us. Well, the biggest thing, I say one more thing. One of the things is that people understand that

that I understand loss. Yes. And I think it's so important that people understand that from that loss, the pain never goes away, but you can do incredible things. The person you lost never leaves your heart. I don't know how many times I asked myself, what would Bo do? I'm not joking. And so you just, there's so...

People are genuinely empathetic if you give them a shot. And I think just reaching out to people, not me president, but just reaching out to people matters. Think of the number of people who are down and out and wonder, where in the hell am I going to go?

What happens? Your empathy is genuine, it's sincere, it's infectious, and it's a pleasure to be led by you. Well, you guys are giving me more credit than ever. Thank you. And thank you for the hope that you give to everybody. I really do. I am optimistic.

I'm with you. I'm with you. You know, I will leave you there. And we take, you know, we say this to everybody. We have taken up too much of your time. I have a friend of mine who always says, if you're feeling down, call five people and tell them how much you love them. Yeah. And you know what? It works. It does work. Yeah.

It does work. So give me your number. Yeah, it'll just be a text. I promise it won't be. Mr. President, thank you so much. Thank you. Thank you guys. No, I really enjoyed it. Thank you. Thank you. Invite me back. You got it.

Oh, boy. Yeah. Who was that again, Tom? I turned to Jay. We both turned to each other. I almost started crying at the end. Yeah. I almost started crying, I swear to God, when he just in the middle. We started talking about loss. Yeah. Yeah, me too. But even before that, because I had an out-of-body experience about it, I was like,

How did my little dumbass from Chicago get to this point? At the same moment, I was sitting there, he was telling a story, and I'm just staring at him going, I'm sitting here watching, giving my full attention to the President of the United States. And he looks you right in the eye. I mean, not a lot of people get to meet him, let alone ask him questions. Because you know, when he's in crowds, people try to grab him and ask him something really, really fast. But he's on the move, so he can't do it. So to get him and like...

Have him there. His... You know, you can tell a lot when you're... You can tell a lot when you're watching somebody on television or you're watching them on a talk show or you're reading an interview with them or something like that. You can feel like you can kind of... But...

Being across from somebody, you could, nothing, you can tell everything. He really did seem like the most genuinely empathetic, kind. And he truly cares. Yeah. And it's such a great vibe. And here's the other thing.

You know, we talk a little bit about, you know, what side you fall on politically, et cetera, et cetera. You can't blame a guy who has such a great vibe and a passion for the country. And you can hear all the mudslinging you want, but when you see someone who's dedicated their life, has...

Hasn't made a ton of dough. Went into public service at age 29. And has dedicated his life, his whole life to that. Through thick and thin. How could you say that what he's doing is anything but absolutely in the service of this country. Yeah, but even just on people skills and vibe alone alone,

Wouldn't you, no matter what party you associate yourself with, wouldn't you want someone like that to represent you? Like, he just seems like the greatest guy. That's a great point. He's just human. That's a great point. Even if you don't agree, wouldn't you want somebody who has no ulterior motive? The figurehead of the country. It's like, I'm proud of that. He just seems like a decent dude. You know, just thank you. I know. And of course, in this great moment,

person that we're talking about. Not you. Is the president. Yeah, not you. Mr. Joe Mbaye! Smart. Smart. Smart. Smartless is 100% organic and artisanally handcrafted by Rob Armjarv, Bennett Barbico, and Michael Granteri.

Smart Less. If you like Smart Less, you can listen early and ad-free right now by joining Wondery Plus in the Wondery app or on Apple Podcasts. Before you go, tell us about yourself by filling out a short survey at wondery.com slash survey.