The Great America Show - In Memory of THE GREAT LOU DOBBS!

00:00:00.000 Hello, everybody. Welcome to The Great America Show. It's great to have you with us. Happy

00:00:06.340 Friday. Today's show is going to be a little bit different than what we usually do here

00:00:10.380 on The Great America Show. It's going to be more of a somber show. No news today. So

00:00:16.100 if you're tuned in and you want the latest news, we're not covering any news today. I

00:00:21.120 want to dedicate today's show to a special man, a man who made me who I am today, a man

00:00:25.300 who gave me everything, a man who gave me the show, left behind a wonderful show and

00:00:29.100 a wonderful audience for me. A year ago today, just a few hours ago, I got the worst phone

00:00:35.300 call you can possibly get in your life. The great Lou Dobbs had passed away. As I said,

00:00:41.960 and as you guys know here, each and every day who joined me, he was a mentor to me. He

00:00:47.200 was a business partner. He was a best friend. He was a man who taught me everything I knew

00:00:50.820 about this business. I came into this business as a pilot. I didn't know a darn thing about

00:00:56.500 broadcast journalism. I didn't know a thing about journalism. I knew a little bit about 0.80

00:01:00.660 politics, and I think that's probably why he liked me. On my job interview, we sat down,

00:01:06.340 we spoke for an hour, just about nonsense. And I started at the bottom at Fox as a production

00:01:11.560 assistant, partially lose assistant, and worked my way up the ladder and through the ranks and

00:01:18.700 grew to meet this man and have a friend that would be my friend until the day he died and a

00:01:25.040 brother to me. And I say brother, it was a little bit of an age difference between us,

00:01:28.800 but he looked at me as a peer, as a brother, not as someone who was older than me, just trying to

00:01:33.860 tell me everything to do. It was tough love. There was no doubt about it. And I wouldn't trade it for

00:01:40.720 the world. The last few years under his wing have been some of the greatest years of my life.

00:01:46.380 And it's a debt that I can never repay. It's a debt that I can never repay to his family.

00:01:50.980 Just a few hours ago, I spent some time with his family on the farm as we remembered him to be the

00:01:58.280 great human being that he was and the pioneer. For those of you who are joining us who have watched

00:02:04.120 him your entire life, as most of you write and tell me, you know that he was ahead of the curve on just

00:02:10.860 about everything. Back in 2006, 2004, five, his books, War on the Middle Class, Exporting America.

00:02:18.360 He wrote about everything that has now come true today. You don't believe me? Go on Amazon.

00:02:24.600 You can probably get the books for four or five bucks, Exporting America and War on the Middle Class.

00:02:29.760 He wrote those two books in the early 2000s about what was going to happen to this country

00:02:34.220 under democratic rule, what they were going to do to us, what they were going to do to the American job.

00:02:40.860 What they were going to do to the middle class and everything he wrote. Immigration has come true. 1.00

00:02:47.440 And I would often argue with him. We'd argue a lot like brothers do that he was wrong.

00:02:53.140 And I've got to be honest. I've never told him this. I can't wait to see him one day again where I can tell him

00:02:59.500 that about 99 percent of the time what we'd argued, I'd never admit that he was right, even though he was right.

00:03:04.700 But that was the relationship we had. But as I said, some of the things he was right on.

00:03:11.080 One of them cost him his job at Fox News because of complicity, because of corruption.

00:03:16.860 And it was voting machines. It was something that Lou spoke about as early as 2006. Take a listen.

00:03:23.360 Tonight, new evidence that the federal government has ignored a threat to the integrity of our elections.

00:03:29.840 A group of Venezuelan businessmen have bought an American company that supplies electronic voting machines and counts the votes.

00:03:36.980 But your government didn't even review the sale.

00:03:39.600 The voting machine company, critical to this country's election count, and they can't tell you whether or not the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States reviewed it or not?

00:03:51.120 They have no answer for us. 1.00

00:03:52.900 These are the most arrogant, incompetent, bureaucratic idiots. 1.00

00:03:58.020 Smartmatic, based in Boca Raton, provides voting machines in local elections in the United States, like this election in Chicago in March. 1.00

00:04:05.480 But Smartmatic has only five to seven people working in Boca Raton, Florida.

00:04:10.280 Smartmatic is a labyrinth of international holding companies owned by Venezuelan businessmen.

00:04:15.260 The Smartmatic and other voting machine companies are private companies.

00:04:18.800 They have proprietary software they can call a trade secret.

00:04:22.700 Electronic voting experts with extensive experience say it's nearly impossible to verify if a proprietary system is tamper-proof.

00:04:30.320 All of the voting system vendors in the United States are private companies.

00:04:33.420 The problem is the closed-door proprietary nature of the process.

00:04:38.520 The closed system we have right now makes it extremely hard to find out what's going on.

00:04:43.420 And that means that should a thief get in a position of power, we would never know.

00:04:48.280 Some voter watchdog groups and others in Congress are calling for a full review

00:04:52.360 and say the ownership of all electronic voting companies should be reviewed to determine if it poses a risk to U.S. elections.

00:04:58.680 The U.S. Treasury Department today would not confirm or deny if a so-called CFIUS review was underway on Smartmatic.

00:05:06.680 Watchdog groups question why U.S. voting machines would be under the control of citizens of another country,

00:05:12.640 especially a country whose own election process is highly suspect.

00:05:16.780 We believe this is a national security issue.

00:05:19.740 There is no way that companies belonging to non-U.S. corporations should have access to our election.

00:05:28.000 In the case of Smartmatic, there are a number of unanswered questions.

00:05:31.780 That's why I wrote to the Secretary of the Treasury and asked them to review the ownership.

00:05:36.600 It's offshore, it's murky, no one seems to know who owns it.

00:05:40.120 Certainly our government should know.

00:05:41.780 Imagine that.

00:05:44.300 That was 2006.

00:05:46.800 Now, I don't think Lou Davies gets enough credit for all that he has said and all that he has done and been right about,

00:05:53.040 but I don't think ever in his mind did he imagine that 14 years post that video,

00:05:58.300 post that news clip segment there on CNN, would 2020 happen and all that happened with it.

00:06:05.860 But he warned us.

00:06:07.780 He told us this is what was going to happen.

00:06:09.960 Now, I always ask you, don't take my word for it.

00:06:13.780 It wasn't the only thing.

00:06:15.560 Let's talk about immigration.

00:06:17.020 Much of the talks surrounding the Senate's illegal immigration bill is centering on low-skill jobs,

00:06:22.140 but high-skill jobs are also at stake.

00:06:24.740 As Bill Tucker now reports,

00:06:26.580 that legislation could discourage college students from pursuing degrees in both mathematics and science.

00:06:32.520 When it comes to science and math, the president and his administration like to talk a tough game.

00:06:39.860 And we can make sure our children are prepared for the jobs of the future,

00:06:42.880 and our country is more competitive by strengthening math and science skills.

00:06:48.040 But the president's talk doesn't match his walk.

00:06:51.760 He's endorsed a grand immigration compromise in the Senate,

00:06:54.960 a compromise that puts industry first, not students,

00:06:58.200 by exploding the size of the H-1B visa program from 65,000 to 180,000.

00:07:05.300 Worker, activists, and organized labor call the move shameless.

00:07:08.960 There is absolute inconsistency, a complete 180-degree contradiction

00:07:15.840 between the notion that we want to encourage our kids to go into these fields

00:07:20.800 and the notion that we're going to depress wages in these fields

00:07:25.260 and then ensure that the jobs are offshore.

00:07:29.160 Our colleges and universities are graduating more than 300,000 students a year

00:07:34.180 with bachelors, masters, or Ph.D.s in computer or information science, math, and engineering,

00:07:40.780 according to the U.S. Department of Education and the Computing Research Association.

00:07:45.560 300,000 a year, yet the Department of Labor projects the average yearly job creation in those fields

00:07:51.740 will only be 120,000 jobs.

00:07:55.720 There's no shortage of workers.

00:07:57.760 There are a string of reports from the GAO and from independent studies

00:08:01.980 showing that H-1B workers are paid less than American workers.

00:08:06.780 And researchers at the Duke University's Pratt School of Engineering

00:08:10.140 surveyed 68 companies and found they weren't going offshore

00:08:14.020 because of any shortages of engineers or deficiencies in American workers.

00:08:18.860 It was and is all about cost savings.

00:08:21.920 If the higher-paying wage jobs are either leaving the country

00:08:26.700 or being given to workers coming in from another country,

00:08:31.000 how are we going to continue to fund our tax base?

00:08:33.860 Leading to another very simple question.

00:08:37.160 Why would our children even consider the fields of math and science or engineering

00:08:41.360 if their government is so committed to giving those jobs away, Lou,

00:08:44.200 or, even worse, suppressing the wages of those jobs that stay here?

00:08:48.280 Yeah, it's frightening that we have provided so few incentives,

00:08:51.940 and I'm talking about really direct incentives, not just the labor market, the job market,

00:08:56.620 but direct incentives to encourage our young people to study mathematics and science,

00:09:00.960 a critical national need.

00:09:02.960 Bill, thank you very much.

00:09:03.920 Bill Tucker.

00:09:05.320 Imagine that, folks.

00:09:06.520 Once again, another example of the great Lou Dobbs predicting exactly what was going to happen to this country

00:09:14.440 or what the Marxist-Democrats were going to do to this country.

00:09:19.280 I mean, I can't say I told you so.

00:09:23.880 But these same issues resonate still now today, till this day.

00:09:28.520 These issues are now still resonating.

00:09:30.280 We find out this week, and I promised we weren't going to talk about news today,

00:09:35.860 but just to tell you how accurate and spot-on this man was 20-plus years ago,

00:09:42.940 this week we have a Republican congresswoman proposing more visas for illegals.

00:09:49.440 I mean, you cannot make this stuff up.

00:09:52.500 And from time to time, Lou Dobbs, and by the way,

00:09:54.720 for those of you who didn't watch Lou your entire life or started watching towards the end,

00:09:58.000 Lou built CNN.

00:10:00.900 I mean, he brought plenty of people under his wing who are still now at Fox News,

00:10:04.500 who, you know, since left CNN.

00:10:07.060 Maria Bartiromo started out under Lou Dobbs. 0.94

00:10:09.820 Stuart Varney started out under Lou Dobbs.

00:10:12.160 There's a long list of people who Lou Dobbs trained, including myself.

00:10:17.020 So years later, Lou Dobbs decided CNN and him weren't for each other.

00:10:22.140 CNN started moving further, radically left.

00:10:25.140 And Lou Dobbs started moving towards common sense, more towards common sense.

00:10:31.620 So Lou departed CNN, took a year off, and went to Fox Business.

00:10:36.640 And once at Fox Business, he'd have some fun

00:10:38.640 trashing the network that he once built with his good friend Stuart Varney.

00:10:44.060 Let's take a listen.

00:10:44.680 Just what has happened over there at CNN, the formerly known Clinton News Network.

00:10:51.160 Who better to ask than the man who put CNN on the map in the first place?

00:10:56.180 His name is Lou Dobbs, and he's on the screen right now.

00:10:58.240 He is the host of Lou Dobbs tonight on the Fox Business Network, thank God.

00:11:01.940 We did build quite a network over there, didn't we?

00:11:04.620 You did.

00:11:05.000 You started the first ever nightly business program on network television, and it was an outstanding success.

00:11:13.600 You provided most of the money for the first 10 years.

00:11:16.460 Well, we did, and it was a hoot.

00:11:19.060 And by the way, to watch these folks who are playing with the outfit that you and I helped build, along with hundreds of others,

00:11:28.880 it is sad to think that that creepy atmosphere is the legacy of Ted Turner.

00:11:37.660 It is just horrific.

00:11:39.940 And AT&T bought that thing, and they're not doing anything to fix it.

00:11:43.460 It makes me mad as hell.

00:11:44.700 When we started out, we were pretty much, let's get it on the air, we were the news, we were pretty straight down the middle.

00:11:51.760 We decided what was news, and away we went, and it was a success.

00:11:55.580 And they went terribly wrong in the mid-1990s.

00:11:59.580 They became the Clinton News Network then.

00:12:01.840 And it's gotten worse with Trump and the Oval Office.

00:12:04.360 Oh, it is.

00:12:06.360 With Trump and the Oval Office, these people are beside themselves.

00:12:09.780 They can't even create a rational sentence, let alone thought.

00:12:13.020 And watching Chris Cuomo try to be a good guy, a bad guy, he wants to be, they're so conflicted,

00:12:19.940 and they're now so conscious of the fact that they are lying SOBs, and the entire country knows it. 0.58

00:12:26.440 They owe this nation an apology.

00:12:28.440 They owe this president an apology.

00:12:30.580 AT&T should pick up the phone and call the president and say we're sorry.

00:12:36.860 And it will never happen again.

00:12:38.960 Not under our ownership ever again will CNN become anything other than a news network.

00:12:45.700 And the hell with this nonsense created by...

00:12:49.100 There you go, Dobbs. 0.96

00:12:49.940 That's what I wanted to say.

00:12:50.880 I wanted to see some fire.

00:12:52.240 But you know perfectly well that AT&T, whomsoever is in charge, will never do that, will they?

00:12:58.180 Yeah.

00:12:58.700 And I don't just pretend stuff about Zucker.

00:13:01.020 He couldn't find his way to the closet, let alone, you know, down the hallway.

00:13:05.060 Anyway, the boss of the place, AT&T, needs to tell them, this is the way you're going to do business.

00:13:11.580 Because they can't do this very well.

00:13:13.800 That's the Lou Dobbs we wanted. 0.99

00:13:14.940 That's what we wanted.

00:13:16.420 Who are they fooling?

00:13:18.720 That's the Lou Dobbs that you got on camera, and that's the Lou Dobbs you got off camera.

00:13:23.940 As you can tell, it's probably the reason why Fox Business couldn't handle it.

00:13:28.160 They couldn't handle the truth.

00:13:29.520 They couldn't handle a firebrand who told the truth.

00:13:32.140 And they couldn't handle subscribing to a man who told nothing but the truth.

00:13:38.640 They, like, go along to get alongers.

00:13:41.180 And it's why Lou Dobbs ultimately parted ways with the network, and we started the Great America Show,

00:13:46.500 because he had a platform where he had nobody telling him what to do.

00:13:49.860 Not that anyone at Fox told him what to do.

00:13:52.260 In just a few moments, we're going to be joined by a man who spent a decent amount of time with Lou, almost as much as me.

00:13:59.780 Started out a big TV career with the great Lou Dobbs.

00:14:04.420 Worked with him for many, many years.

00:14:07.260 And we're just going to reminisce about some of the great times and some of the great things that you don't know about Lou Dobbs.

00:14:14.780 Behind the scenes, what he was like, what he did, and some really, really, really good stories.

00:14:20.300 So, folks, we're going to take a quick break here.

00:14:22.220 When we return, we're going to be joined by a former Lou Dobbs producer, a good friend of mine.

00:14:29.160 He's going to be on the other side of this quick break.

00:14:30.640 Stay with us.

00:14:37.220 Thanks for staying with us, folks, for that short break.

00:14:39.420 We really appreciate it.

00:14:40.480 As I said, today's a special show.

00:14:42.380 It's a show dedicated to the man who taught me everything I know.

00:14:44.980 A man who's a patriot, a great American, and a warrior, a fighter, until the very end.

00:14:52.080 Much like President Trump, President Trump found out about the news of the great Lou Dobbs passing.

00:14:58.020 He was actually the one to break the news.

00:14:59.540 And just days before, he had almost been assassinated in Butler, Pennsylvania.

00:15:03.280 And he had some really kind words to say about the great Lou Dobbs.

00:15:06.720 I want to bring that to you.

00:15:10.480 Lou Dobbs was one of the greatest ever in an industry that had a lot of great people.

00:15:15.980 There was nobody like him.

00:15:17.480 He was my friend, and he was a real talent, and he was a tough cookie.

00:15:21.720 He was so tough.

00:15:22.900 But he was tough on bad people, not on good people.

00:15:26.180 He is somebody that's really going to be missed.

00:15:28.180 He's a big voice.

00:15:28.940 Lou was a really big voice, a very powerful voice.

00:15:32.480 It's very devastating.

00:15:33.740 I thought that he was going to, frankly, be around forever.

00:15:38.440 Debbie, his wife, is unbelievable. 0.97

00:15:41.120 I'd see him together all the time, and they really had a great relationship.

00:15:45.300 I thought Lou was going to be here for a long time.

00:15:47.280 Then I got a little bad news two or three days ago, and they were saying he wasn't feeling so hot.

00:15:52.260 And that made me feel badly.

00:15:54.700 And I guess I wasn't feeling so hot either a few days ago, come to think of it.

00:15:58.000 But Lou was just a very, very special guy to me.

00:16:02.520 He was somebody very instrumental in the success of MAGA.

00:16:06.500 He understood MAGA better than anybody.

00:16:09.320 And he will truly be missed.

00:16:10.880 He was truly a great man, great at what he did, and a great person.

00:16:15.400 So it's an honor to do this little tribute for him.

00:16:18.540 I would do it anywhere they wanted me to.

00:16:21.380 He was very, very special.

00:16:23.020 And may he rest in peace.

00:16:24.380 President Trump with those very kind words, and we appreciate it.

00:16:29.500 And as I said, that was just days after he was nearly assassinated in Butler, Pennsylvania,

00:16:34.000 by that sick, sick Matthew Thomas Crook, who we still know nothing about, by the way.

00:16:39.940 He had said he thought Lou was going to be around forever.

00:16:42.360 I think we all didn't.

00:16:43.260 And that's why the day I got the call, it was very surreal to me.

00:16:47.840 And still a year later now to the day, it still doesn't feel like he's gone.

00:16:51.920 I still feel his presence in everything I do.

00:16:54.380 And every word I say, every morning I wake up, I think about him.

00:16:57.200 Every night before I go to sleep, I think about him.

00:16:59.380 And I'm not exaggerating.

00:17:01.660 He's here with me.

00:17:02.520 And sometimes he sends signs that he's watching, and he knows everything I'm doing.

00:17:07.400 And I think he's proud of me for the show that we've been able to put on.

00:17:12.580 And as I said, I miss him dearly more than anything in this world

00:17:16.480 and would give anything to have him back.

00:17:18.680 So, as I promised, folks, we're going to be joined now by my good friend,

00:17:23.200 a former producer of the great Lou Dobbs tonight.

00:17:27.360 His name is Michael Biondi.

00:17:28.720 Now, I came into the TV industry, as I told you.

00:17:31.580 I knew nothing.

00:17:32.280 And Michael took me under his wing the first day there and told me everything I needed to know.

00:17:38.100 What Michael didn't tell me was how hard it was to work for the great Lou Dobbs

00:17:42.940 and how difficult of a boss he was and how rewarding it was.

00:17:47.620 Mike, first of all, thank you for everything you've done for me throughout my career.

00:17:51.760 I want to get your sense first.

00:17:55.440 The great Lou Dobbs, you worked for him for 2014 through 2020.

00:17:59.360 I'm sorry, 2016 through 2020.

00:18:00.960 So, election to election.

00:18:02.760 Your first impression of the great Lou Dobbs?

00:18:06.820 Man, John, it's great to be here.

00:18:08.880 And Lou is and always will be a legend and a pioneer.

00:18:12.300 I remember the first time I met him, I went to his office for the interview.

00:18:16.000 Didn't know what to expect.

00:18:17.280 The first thing he told me, he's like, Michael, everything you learn in this industry

00:18:22.060 goes out the window you start with me today.

00:18:26.220 I got a little nervous on the spot, but hey, it's not like a challenge to me.

00:18:29.880 And I always like a challenge.

00:18:31.120 So, right from the very beginning of working with Lou Dobbs, he – straight shooter.

00:18:36.160 He let me know what was going to happen the next few years working with him.

00:18:39.140 And to be honest with you, I didn't know what to expect at that point.

00:18:42.500 But it turned out to be a real blessing and an honor to work with him all those years,

00:18:46.860 especially through the election.

00:18:48.940 And I mean, great people like you and the rest of the staff there.

00:18:51.920 It was a true honor.

00:18:53.560 And it was a big highlight of my career without a doubt.

00:18:56.960 That's such a Lou Dobbs thing to say.

00:18:58.600 Everything goes out the window.

00:18:59.900 You and I have had so many laughs with him.

00:19:02.440 We became a dynamic duo working with him.

00:19:06.380 Sometimes hard for him to get his head around.

00:19:09.320 And this is us, I think, in – it's got to be like 2019, 2018, 2019.

00:19:15.560 Maybe it was 2020.

00:19:17.380 We came to work, and it was Halloween in our defense, dressed as Costco samplers.

00:19:22.960 Yeah.

00:19:23.320 And you could just see the look on his face that somehow anything I did never ceases

00:19:29.100 to surprise him because he just expected it, Mike.

00:19:32.480 He did.

00:19:33.020 And that was a great day.

00:19:34.080 I mean, I can't remember the exact words he had for us for our costume choice that day.

00:19:39.300 But I think we impressed him, to say the least.

00:19:42.080 You could tell by the look on his face there.

00:19:44.540 He was never surprised at anything I did.

00:19:47.180 You know, I started there.

00:19:48.280 I didn't know what to expect.

00:19:49.420 I watched him a little bit growing up.

00:19:51.500 And nobody warned me.

00:19:53.340 Nobody warned me that, you know, this guy's an OG.

00:19:55.800 This guy is – he's a tough boss.

00:19:58.180 And, you know, you hear from all around the industry, Michael, you know, how hard it is

00:20:04.100 to work for him and this and that.

00:20:05.500 And you hear stories from people who just couldn't do it.

00:20:08.720 And what I got from it, it was about two weeks in, and I came to you and I was like,

00:20:12.820 Mike, I can't do this anymore.

00:20:14.020 I've got to quit.

00:20:15.840 And, you know, you gave me some good words of wisdom.

00:20:18.280 And what I realized was, after two weeks, was it was like an initiation process.

00:20:24.440 It was a hazing process, and he wanted to see where you were at and, you know, if you

00:20:29.680 were worthwhile putting – because he put time and energy into every single person who

00:20:34.700 worked for him.

00:20:35.660 It wasn't just a BS job.

00:20:38.100 You've worked in other television jobs.

00:20:39.700 I haven't.

00:20:41.040 It wasn't just a BS job.

00:20:42.700 He really wanted you to learn.

00:20:45.560 And that was the thing I got for.

00:20:46.740 So after two weeks, Michael, I said, I'm either going to go or I've got to figure something

00:20:49.740 out.

00:20:50.300 And something clicked in my mind.

00:20:52.040 And I looked at Lou one day, and I said to him, you know, you can say anything you

00:20:57.440 want to say to me, but you can't – number one, you can't hurt my feelings, number one.

00:21:01.560 And number two, you can't scare me.

00:21:03.700 And he looked at me like I was crazy as hell, like this 25-year-old kid's in here talking

00:21:09.900 to me.

00:21:10.380 I'm the oldest and longest-serving news anchor in television.

00:21:13.640 And I think we gained a mutual respect for each other that day, and we grew.

00:21:18.300 And, I mean, you saw it through everyone.

00:21:20.800 And he and I grew to become best friends.

00:21:23.440 And you were a Dobbs loyalist, too, sticking with him for four years.

00:21:30.600 Yeah.

00:21:31.140 I mean, I kind of started the same boat as you.

00:21:32.940 I was Lou's right-hand man.

00:21:34.920 You know, I started as a production assistant with Fox and with Lou Dobbs tonight.

00:21:38.400 So I kind of understood your pain at the beginning, so to speak.

00:21:41.820 But just from putting in the hard work and the loyalty, as you mentioned, he really

00:21:46.460 does reward you for putting in that extra time and effort and going above and beyond.

00:21:50.240 And he raised the bar to a super high standard, but it made you a better professional and better

00:21:55.840 person overall.

00:21:56.960 You know, your outlook on life and just the world, he had a deeper appreciation and perspective

00:22:02.100 of it just from working with him day in and day out.

00:22:04.120 But the work ethic I got from him, Michael, it was just, you know, there's so many people

00:22:09.440 who have jobs out there who just go to work nine to five, and they hate their job.

00:22:14.480 They hate their life.

00:22:15.720 Working with him, I felt like, Michael, when you did something right, first of all, if you

00:22:19.860 did something wrong, you heard about it.

00:22:21.820 Oh, you did.

00:22:22.200 You did something right, Michael.

00:22:23.660 It was so rewarding.

00:22:25.360 I'll never forget.

00:22:27.280 Lou called me two weeks before he died.

00:22:31.300 We just put on an episode and he was battling and he came to work and he can barely put on

00:22:37.000 a show.

00:22:37.440 He was sick.

00:22:39.080 I'll never forget.

00:22:40.020 He called me up and he said, thank you so much for putting that together.

00:22:43.300 Last minute show.

00:22:44.300 I was supposed to do the show.

00:22:45.540 He goes, we got an interview with the president.

00:22:47.200 Something big had just happened.

00:22:48.740 He goes, I'm going to do the show.

00:22:49.840 I said, no problem.

00:22:50.340 Lou, let me know what you need me to do.

00:22:51.340 He said, just book a show.

00:22:52.860 I booked it with another person who was working for him.

00:22:55.360 We booked up a great show and I'll never forget.

00:22:57.840 He called me and he said, and I was crying.

00:23:01.060 Just listen to him thanking me.

00:23:02.720 But you don't get that, Michael, from your typical boss.

00:23:06.620 You're just another number with him.

00:23:08.600 You were a human being and he cared and he invested in you.

00:23:13.320 A hundred percent.

00:23:14.120 And you can do something as small as, you know, just getting him the right order at work,

00:23:20.500 whatever it may be.

00:23:21.340 But just having that appreciation.

00:23:23.000 And as you see in that photo there, being able to be side by side with the great Lou

00:23:27.400 Dobbs and, you know, sharing your thoughts and your opinion, it actually meant something

00:23:31.220 to him.

00:23:31.760 You know, he wasn't someone that just turned you away.

00:23:33.460 And he really did appreciate having that deeper connection with people he was able to

00:23:36.820 work with day in and day out.

00:23:38.280 And to your point, you don't get that at any job nowadays.

00:23:40.900 You are just a number.

00:23:41.900 You don't have that personal connection or that personal aspiration to go above and beyond

00:23:46.320 for someone else.

00:23:48.120 It's hard, Michael.

00:23:48.840 I have no boss anymore.

00:23:50.020 So I have nobody yell at me, tell me what I'm doing wrong.

00:23:52.900 I mean, looking at the show numbers, I like to think I'm not doing anything wrong, but

00:23:56.460 I got nobody there to smack me in the back of the head.

00:23:58.720 And I talk to Lou's wife every day, Debbie.

00:24:01.140 And, you know, it's hard not having someone there constantly down my back telling me, you

00:24:06.360 know, what to do, what's right, what's wrong.

00:24:08.100 But, Tim, it was a certain kind of connection, as you see here.

00:24:12.240 I think you were giving him a tweet or something.

00:24:14.540 We used to have this little competition.

00:24:16.000 We do Lou's tweets during the show.

00:24:18.600 So you cut a segment during the show while Lou was live.

00:24:21.960 During a commercial break, you got to run from the control room up a flight of stairs

00:24:25.280 into Lou's studio, which every time you ran up the stairs in this rinky-dinky studio

00:24:29.760 in Fox Business, you got to worry about falling through the floor and breaking your neck.

00:24:34.180 You'd give Lou the tweet to read that you just typed up and printed, and he'd either

00:24:38.800 prove it or absolutely annihilate it.

00:24:43.720 Sometimes he'd rip them up, and people in the control room could hear, you know, the

00:24:47.860 10 or 12 people sitting in the control room would sit there and listen, and they'd be

00:24:51.860 cracking up, listening to whatever, whoever just went upstairs and gave him a horrible

00:24:57.160 tweet.

00:24:58.660 But he was hands-on in everything.

00:25:01.340 Nothing was autonomous with him.

00:25:03.200 He wanted to know everything that was going on, and he wanted to say in a word and everything.

00:25:07.880 I mean, we weren't tweeting on his behalf, but he had to approve it.

00:25:10.940 He had to edit it.

00:25:12.100 And sometimes we get a retweet from the president, and it was like we hit pay dirt.

00:25:16.780 We go viral.

00:25:17.860 It was a great feeling.

00:25:19.240 Yeah, it was one like I've never had a boss like him before.

00:25:25.920 That was you.

00:25:26.920 Every Friday, Lou would buy us, the team, lunch.

00:25:30.720 And before I got there, it was the same order every time.

00:25:35.040 It was from this place called Serté. 0.95

00:25:36.700 And it was just so disgusting.

00:25:38.980 But everyone was so scared to ask Lou to change the order.

00:25:42.500 So they told me, they said, can you just ask me if we could order something different?

00:25:46.520 So I said, Lou, you mind if we order something different?

00:25:48.460 He goes, man, I don't care what you guys order.

00:25:51.240 So I come back, and that was up to me to what we ordered.

00:25:53.580 So some days it was pizza, some days it was all unhealthy stuff.

00:25:57.500 Right there, as you can see, I think we ordered a taco sale.

00:26:02.160 And we left the case for Lou on his desk, and he wasn't going to finish it. 0.89

00:26:06.300 So the scavenger bodybuilder, Michael, went in to eat the rest of the frigging tacos.

00:26:10.980 There's probably 20 in there.

00:26:12.320 And he probably ate them throughout the show and on his bus ride home from work.

00:26:17.360 I did.

00:26:18.160 I remember that day.

00:26:18.940 I'm glad you captured it.

00:26:19.940 I mean, what boss can you bring in a box of tacos from Taco Bell in New York City at Fox, right?

00:26:27.500 So, again, that's just Lou, though, you know, being human, you know,

00:26:31.020 not being this corporate monotonous boss that you're afraid to just let your guard down

00:26:36.260 and just have a moment like that.

00:26:37.780 And that's just one of many.

00:26:39.000 But safe to say we did all enjoy Taco Bell that day.

00:26:42.340 Now, my desk would be positioned right outside.

00:26:45.820 So if you're looking at Lou right there, he could kind of see out the corner.

00:26:49.340 My desk was right there and everyone else's was behind me.

00:26:53.480 What I would usually do is I would get everybody riled up and I'd start someone would be in

00:26:58.080 that office getting yelled at and I'd be sitting out at my desk laughing at them with only they

00:27:03.500 could hear me because lose hearing wasn't the best where only they could hear me.

00:27:07.460 So they'd be sitting in Lou's office trying not to laugh as I'm sitting in my desk laughing,

00:27:12.180 pissing my pants that they're getting chewed out because they did something wrong.

00:27:15.340 And he only yelled at you or he wasn't really yelling.

00:27:17.420 It was learning when you did something wrong or when you were wrong.

00:27:21.080 And it was to teach you.

00:27:22.400 There was many days where Michael Biondi would be sitting in that office getting a history lesson

00:27:29.600 or getting a grammar lesson.

00:27:31.480 And I'd sit out there laughing silently.

00:27:36.480 And only Michael and he couldn't contain his laughter.

00:27:39.220 After about a few weeks of it happening, Lou caught on.

00:27:44.500 And boy, did I hear it from him. 0.98

00:27:46.480 I was in that office and it was time for me to get my rear end beat by him. 0.86

00:27:53.040 Those were the good old days, Mike. 0.94

00:27:55.000 It really was.

00:27:55.820 You know, there was a...

00:27:57.740 We were outside his office, but really at the end of the day, we were all in that office with him, right?

00:28:01.460 Whether it was like a meeting for the show or just having a powwow, having some Taco Bell or some constructive criticism.

00:28:07.060 It was great.

00:28:07.700 He always had an open door to his office, to his world.

00:28:10.760 Yeah, the door was never closed.

00:28:11.940 It was always open.

00:28:12.740 And it wasn't just a...

00:28:14.400 Oh, here we go.

00:28:15.040 Here's the man with his one of his favorite meals.

00:28:19.280 No, it was.

00:28:19.820 It was always an open door policy.

00:28:20.900 And it was anything.

00:28:21.860 It was about life.

00:28:23.380 It was about your problems at home.

00:28:25.300 Something that was going on at home.

00:28:26.780 I mean, I've witnessed a lot of conversations of yours that I won't tell on the air, but Michael would go to Lou about love life advice because he was always having problems with women.

00:28:37.120 And I'll never forget hearing Lou tell...

00:28:40.600 I won't tell the story to embarrass Mike, but what I did hear come out of Lou's mouth was, partner, you better watch yourself because you're going to get your shelf shot one day.

00:28:52.420 He told me to go to church.

00:28:53.960 I was like, oh, my goodness.

00:28:56.780 That was in the same conversation.

00:28:58.700 It was part of you better go to church. 1.00

00:29:00.620 You're going to get yourself shot one day. 0.99

00:29:03.240 And man, did I sit there and I lost it. 0.99

00:29:06.460 I couldn't contain myself.

00:29:08.560 But that was the kind of boss he was.

00:29:10.520 He was a friend.

00:29:11.520 He was a boss.

00:29:12.440 He was a mentor.

00:29:14.020 And you can literally talk to him about anything.

00:29:17.360 Some of the stories I've heard you talk to him about, I mean, you couldn't talk to your therapist about if you had one, Mike.

00:29:23.800 Yeah, you're right.

00:29:24.660 The open door policy and just being a real human.

00:29:28.120 And it's nice when you can let your guard down with your boss and really just open up about whatever comes to mind and get his cold, hard, honest truth.

00:29:35.840 You know, it's what you need to hear in today's world.

00:29:38.220 So having those conversations was a blessing.

00:29:40.500 You see this picture right here.

00:29:42.660 I don't know if you came to work that day, but it was back when I first started for him.

00:29:46.520 He had a meeting at 10 o'clock in the morning.

00:29:49.600 What I forgot to tell him was the meeting was canceled that day.

00:29:52.460 He'd usually come in around one or two for work because the show was at five or six.

00:29:57.000 It moved around a little bit, five, six or seven.

00:29:59.940 When I got there, it was at seven.

00:30:01.580 And I forgot to tell him the meeting was canceled.

00:30:03.720 And I'll never forget.

00:30:04.860 This is probably a month on the job.

00:30:06.460 He walks into his office.

00:30:08.200 He looks at me.

00:30:09.540 He says, John, did you forget to tell me something?

00:30:13.380 No.

00:30:13.800 What happened, Lou?

00:30:15.280 Yeah, that meeting I was supposed to go to at 10 a.m.

00:30:17.440 It was canceled.

00:30:18.540 He showed up to the meeting, and the thing was canceled.

00:30:22.180 And I'll never forget.

00:30:23.420 I shivered the rest of the day.

00:30:24.840 I was terrified of what was going to happen to me.

00:30:26.420 And he just let it go.

00:30:28.160 But that's him sitting in the morning editorial meeting.

00:30:31.000 And everyone there just nervous because they didn't want to give.

00:30:33.860 This is where we have these morning editorial meetings every morning where you pitch stories.

00:30:39.080 And I used to troll them.

00:30:40.620 I'd wait for everyone to pitch their stories, and then I would pitch the same stories that they just pitched.

00:30:45.500 You can probably guess that this day I didn't do that maneuver because I was a little nervous

00:30:51.620 because I just made this man come into work for no reason.

00:30:55.280 But he forgave you.

00:30:57.120 Yeah, he did forgive me.

00:30:58.960 Weekends.

00:30:59.740 This was weekends for Lou Dobbs.

00:31:01.540 I'd get selfies like this, Mike, of the great Lou Dobbs.

00:31:05.680 This is what was relaxing for him.

00:31:07.520 Go out on the farm.

00:31:08.600 It's called bushwhacking.

00:31:09.880 I don't know anything about it, but it's what he told me it's called.

00:31:12.760 I'm not a farm boy, even though I'd tell him I was a farm boy.

00:31:17.820 But he'd go out there, and this was relaxed.

00:31:19.840 I'd call him up and say, look, what are you doing?

00:31:21.980 And he'd say, I'm out here bushwhacking.

00:31:23.980 And he'd send me this selfie.

00:31:25.100 And I'm like, dude, it's 90 degrees out.

00:31:26.880 No, we got air conditioning in the tractor. 0.99

00:31:29.080 And I go, damn, man, you're rich. 0.99

00:31:31.480 He'd go, no, no, no, no, no, no. 0.99

00:31:33.700 And he never, you know, that was the thing about him.

00:31:35.740 He was probably worth a lot of money.

00:31:38.200 I don't know what the number is, but he never flaunted it like he had money.

00:31:43.180 He never acted like he was better than anybody.

00:31:45.280 None of that stuff, Mike.

00:31:46.920 Yeah, and I got to tell you, too, like being someone that has a lot of money, right?

00:31:51.180 There's a lot of people in the industry that gets to their head.

00:31:53.020 They have big egos, right?

00:31:54.340 But with Lou, going back to him just being a real human being and a mentor, I remember it was my first year working with Lou.

00:32:00.260 It was my birthday.

00:32:01.380 And every year for your birthday, you get a cake.

00:32:03.400 Someone on the team would go out, get you a cake, and then everyone would sing happy birthday, including Lou, and it was so great.

00:32:08.400 And I remember the first year, it was a little tough working for him for the first year, but he really did appreciate the hustle and the effort I was putting in.

00:32:15.500 It was my birthday.

00:32:16.300 I was in there.

00:32:17.540 He gave me his money, and he said, hey, go out and get this.

00:32:20.100 All right, no problem.

00:32:21.300 And he's like, it's your birthday, by the way.

00:32:22.780 I was like, yeah, Lou, it is.

00:32:24.040 He just gave me a $100 bill.

00:32:25.600 I said, happy birthday.

00:32:26.660 I was like, wow, what boss does that?

00:32:28.480 You get a cake on your birthday.

00:32:29.760 You get lunch.

00:32:30.540 I think it was lunch that day.

00:32:32.260 And then $100.

00:32:32.700 So, again, just showing how, like, a generous and humble guy he was, you know?

00:32:38.020 He was larger than life, but he also, when he had that intimate side to him, he was just another friend, someone you could confide in and just enjoy, you know, his company and presence.

00:32:48.140 That's what nobody got to see that side of him on television, because you usually saw it.

00:32:52.400 I was talking with Jim Jordan a few weeks ago, and he's like, Lou was everyone's favorite angry uncle.

00:32:56.740 And I'm like, yeah, he was.

00:32:57.720 But at the same time, this is a man who had a heart bigger than anybody.

00:33:02.000 And he went out and he did his show, and he was a tough guy.

00:33:04.160 He was a tough guy. 0.99

00:33:05.280 I mean, there's times where I was with Lou, and he'd say, I'm going to beat that guy's ass. 0.99

00:33:08.740 I'm like, well, dude, relax. 0.99

00:33:10.400 You're 75 years old.

00:33:11.520 Relax a little bit.

00:33:12.740 He was a tough guy.

00:33:13.840 He was not a little wimp.

00:33:15.520 He was tough in person.

00:33:17.020 He was tough on air.

00:33:17.900 And he wasn't scared of anybody.

00:33:19.340 Going back to the birthday.

00:33:21.940 Now, usually, you know, you're on television.

00:33:24.600 You're not really shy.

00:33:26.180 We got a video of Lou Dobbs being shy.

00:33:29.880 Happy birthday to you.

00:33:33.000 Happy birthday, dear Lou.

00:33:39.240 Happy birthday to you.

00:33:43.120 Never were you able to get him flustered.

00:33:49.600 But somehow, there was a way that he had this, like, as you said, just a big, caring, loving side to him.

00:33:58.340 A hundred percent.

00:33:59.440 And it was nice to do that for every single person on the staff.

00:34:02.280 You too, John.

00:34:03.000 No matter how angry he might have been the day before, if it's your birthday, we're getting a cake,

00:34:07.000 and we're celebrating together as a team and as a family.

00:34:09.400 And to be honest, I haven't had a family like that since my time working with Lou and the rest of the staff.

00:34:16.280 Yeah, it was a hell of a staff.

00:34:17.680 And, you know, it was – the thing with him was it was like he held no grudge, right?

00:34:23.020 So, like, you can have a really bad day with him, and you go home, and you're angry.

00:34:26.540 And then you come into work the next day, and you're still angry.

00:34:28.820 And he comes in.

00:34:29.800 You know, you come strolling down the hallway.

00:34:31.760 You'd hear him coming because he'd say hello to every single person from the elevator.

00:34:35.980 He'd see Jimmy Fallon back when Jimmy Fallon was just like a peon.

00:34:39.400 Yeah.

00:34:40.620 He'd say hello to everybody from the elevator all the way down to the hallway.

00:34:45.200 So, you knew he was coming and everyone, you know, pretended like you were doing work.

00:34:48.260 A lot of times I'd be away from my desk, you know, socializing, and he couldn't find me, and he would be very mad.

00:34:55.380 After a little while, he understood that I was – he called me a butterfly, right?

00:34:59.480 Yeah.

00:34:59.680 Without being a butterfly.

00:35:00.940 But he'd get into work, and you'd still hold that grudge.

00:35:05.100 And then you'd look at him, and you'd say hello like nothing happened.

00:35:07.180 You're like, dude, don't you remember what happened yesterday?

00:35:09.600 You know, you'd think to yourself.

00:35:11.240 And every day was a new day with him.

00:35:12.740 It was never any grudge.

00:35:14.980 You made a mistake.

00:35:15.860 You learned.

00:35:16.760 And you moved on.

00:35:18.300 Yeah.

00:35:18.640 It was great.

00:35:19.040 And even here, as you can see, like, you know, just the way you would treat everybody, like family.

00:35:22.280 I think that was Thanksgiving.

00:35:23.840 Ordered this nice bouquet of food and desserts.

00:35:26.640 We brought some snacks in, and we got to enjoy it together.

00:35:29.360 And, again, what job do you have where your boss goes above and beyond like that to give back to the people who, you know, pour in a lot of their time and effort every day?

00:35:37.220 What's on?

00:35:38.060 Lou Dobbs, Thanksgiving plate.

00:35:40.360 You know what?

00:35:40.740 Yee-haw.

00:35:41.560 My first plate.

00:35:42.340 That was a sign of him, Mike, that nobody got to see that.

00:35:48.540 I wish people really got to see because he was just as you, like you said, man, he was larger than life in everything he did.

00:35:55.700 Just a good person through and through with everything.

00:36:00.780 Generosity.

00:36:01.560 This was back.

00:36:02.420 You weren't here for it, but that was Lou's former executive producer, me, Lou, and him at the White House.

00:36:09.040 You know, sitting on a train with him.

00:36:10.820 Just the amount of time, you know, you'd spend with him.

00:36:15.000 There you go.

00:36:15.960 That's very typical of what a normal day looked like for my time at Fox.

00:36:23.000 I think you could probably attest to it.

00:36:24.780 Just the look on his face, like, what the hell did he just say?

00:36:29.640 He wasn't holding back.

00:36:30.900 He'd always tell you what's on his mind, you know?

00:36:33.360 I mean, you've seen me how many times get just absolutely obliterated.

00:36:38.320 And, you know, the best part about it was I'd be getting yelled at and then they'd all be outside doing the same thing to me, laughing at me as I would be the pinball man that day.

00:36:52.720 It was, man, the times we had there, Michael, I think are just, I don't think I'll ever have that much fun again at a job.

00:37:00.380 No, and I've gone to other jobs since then.

00:37:04.000 Nothing's ever come as close.

00:37:05.460 Never had a boss like him.

00:37:06.760 And working for a guy like Lou Dobbs, you get really, really tough, thick skin, and it really just helps you with everything in life.

00:37:12.860 And those four years were great.

00:37:14.880 You know, if I can go back to any part of my career, I'd go back there in a heartbeat.

00:37:18.700 Yeah, I'd say you leaving the show to go work for another morning show was the worst mistake you've ever made in your life because it was just so much fun.

00:37:28.060 And when they canceled his show, man, I was, I'd never been so livid in my life with what they did to him.

00:37:34.260 We've got a video to show people what it was like.

00:37:37.960 I think this is it.

00:37:39.820 of some of the great Lou Dobbs skits.

00:37:43.800 Now, they always wanted Lou to do these skits on, you know, various different shows because he was like so serious.

00:37:53.220 So to get a laugh out of him was like very hard to do.

00:37:56.820 Let's let's watch it together.

00:37:58.900 And now Adam Schiff meets his favorite celebrity.

00:38:04.920 Well, this is so exciting.

00:38:08.460 Very exciting.

00:38:10.100 Mostly for you, I think.

00:38:12.160 Can I get you to autograph this one?

00:38:14.980 Make it out to Steve.

00:38:16.740 Steve.

00:38:17.640 I thought your, I thought your name was Adam.

00:38:19.920 Yes.

00:38:20.440 But I've always liked the name Steve.

00:38:22.720 It's going to be a cool name, isn't it?

00:38:24.580 Steve it is.

00:38:25.760 Steve.

00:38:28.160 Look out, everyone.

00:38:29.100 Here comes Steve.

00:38:31.640 And there goes Steve.

00:38:32.860 I think it's time for you to leave.

00:38:34.280 Yes.

00:38:34.540 You know, I think it's time for you to stop being so awesome.

00:38:38.100 No promises.

00:38:39.420 That was Lou during the week.

00:38:43.200 And I don't know what that was, but that was Lou during the week.

00:38:50.340 And this was Lou during the weekend.

00:38:54.400 You know, it's a tale of two men, but the same, same person, Michael.

00:38:59.680 Yeah.

00:39:00.060 A workhorse in front of the camera behind the scenes and on the farm, as you can see there.

00:39:04.260 And that's, that's not light.

00:39:05.420 That's heavy.

00:39:06.420 Well, Lou was doing that day in and day out.

00:39:08.320 Heavy lifting is what they call it, right?

00:39:10.260 Yeah, definitely.

00:39:12.360 We've got another skit here.

00:39:13.960 This is one of my favorites.

00:39:15.040 This is when Lou would do Bill Hammer and Gutfeld's little gigs.

00:39:20.440 But this is just to show you who he was.

00:39:22.460 Here we are.

00:39:24.360 I don't know, Lou.

00:39:25.560 Do I have to go to work?

00:39:26.700 Can't I just go to work with you?

00:39:28.160 You're going to be fine.

00:39:29.620 And if he gives you any trouble, just ignore him.

00:39:33.280 He's constantly following me in the halls.

00:39:35.780 In the halls?

00:39:36.660 In the halls.

00:39:38.140 Well, ignore him.

00:39:40.080 All right.

00:39:40.760 I'll try.

00:39:41.940 Thanks, Lou.

00:39:42.760 Have fun.

00:39:43.560 I'm going to try.

00:39:46.760 Now, if you see that pin he's wearing right there, it's very pinned right here.

00:39:51.100 Yeah?

00:39:51.540 Did you forget something?

00:39:53.800 Oh, thanks.

00:39:54.820 Peanut butter?

00:39:56.120 Exactly.

00:39:56.880 Awesome.

00:39:57.200 Thanks.

00:39:57.900 Greg.

00:39:58.680 Yeah?

00:39:59.520 This?

00:40:00.260 Oh.

00:40:01.640 Thanks, Lou.

00:40:02.540 Almost forgot.

00:40:03.460 Thanks.

00:40:04.180 Greg.

00:40:05.340 Oh.

00:40:07.220 And this?

00:40:09.020 Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.

00:40:09.880 Thanks.

00:40:10.440 Geez, I almost forgot.

00:40:11.920 Uncle Steven.

00:40:13.300 And this?

00:40:14.060 Hi.

00:40:15.040 Yeah, yeah.

00:40:15.940 Okay.

00:40:16.940 Anything else?

00:40:18.560 His brother.

00:40:19.780 Thanks, Lou.

00:40:21.160 Remember, have fun.

00:40:32.560 Hey, you dropped your alligator.

00:40:37.220 Oh, boy.

00:40:39.060 I mean, just absolutely brilliant.

00:40:42.780 And this was on the way out.

00:40:44.040 What's up, Bill?

00:40:44.560 Hey, Greg.

00:40:44.860 How was the show?

00:40:46.520 It was pretty good.

00:40:47.420 I was great.

00:40:48.920 You were.

00:40:49.400 Yeah, the show was okay, but I was good.

00:40:50.860 Really good.

00:40:51.840 So, you ready to go, champ?

00:40:56.140 Yeah, let's get out of here.

00:40:57.100 You didn't tell me we were going to a costume party.

00:41:05.980 Oh, we're not.

00:41:12.160 Oh, ever, ever straight to, we got to hang out with Hammer a bunch.

00:41:16.260 His office was down the hallway.

00:41:17.820 I mean, what I would do to go back, Michael?

00:41:20.900 What I would do?

00:41:22.480 Yeah.

00:41:23.160 Honestly, time machines, that's a time in life.

00:41:26.140 It was a great time in life, you know?

00:41:27.620 It was very rewarding.

00:41:29.380 Before we wrap, I want to get your favorite, I guess, I want to put you on the spot,

00:41:33.460 your favorite memory with Lou for the audience.

00:41:37.860 I mean, I tell them every single day here.

00:41:40.060 They're probably tired of him.

00:41:42.040 But I want to get your favorite memory of what you'll always remember him by.

00:41:47.680 I'll say, I think the fact that even when I was just an entry-level PA, getting my feet

00:41:57.080 under me at Fox, the fact that after every single show, he would always require that I

00:42:02.700 would come out at the end of the show, meet him at the end of the show, and then I would

00:42:06.140 talk with him and the executive producer, what worked, what could have been better.

00:42:09.280 And the fact that my opinion actually mattered to him, that meant the world to me because

00:42:13.800 I was saying after the show, it was a long day.

00:42:16.280 Maybe it was a hard day in the office, but the fact that he wanted to just get my honest

00:42:19.280 feedback and opinion actually meant something to him, doing that after every show, that

00:42:23.920 says a lot about the person that Lou Dobbs was.

00:42:26.860 Everyone was at his level when it came time to just be a real human being.

00:42:31.240 And yeah, some people would say it's monotonous, but I felt great at the end of every day,

00:42:36.460 especially during the election season, staying with him until like 1 or 2 a.m.

00:42:40.380 The night that President Trump got in the first time, it was like the Super Bowl.

00:42:44.420 And being with him and Debbie that night was, it was magical.

00:42:48.560 I don't want to sound cliche, but it really was.

00:42:50.280 I never experienced anything like that.

00:42:51.760 So being able to experience those great moments and the small moments with Lou and the rest

00:42:55.680 of the team are, you know, things always remember my career.

00:42:59.500 And I can't say thank you enough to all the leadership and mentorship he gave me as well

00:43:04.140 along the way.

00:43:04.700 I want to find something to read.

00:43:08.640 Where was it?

00:43:10.860 One of my last text messages to him before he passed away.

00:43:17.380 I said, hurry up and get better.

00:43:19.080 I have nobody to argue with.

00:43:20.520 I'm ready to start a war with myself.

00:43:23.220 And then his reply, very Lou Dobbs-esque, that war started long, long ago.

00:43:29.480 At least you've started one.

00:43:30.880 You could win.

00:43:31.640 Oh, my gosh.

00:43:34.160 This is a man who, you know, was battling and never lost his sense of humor.

00:43:40.800 And, you know, I was glad I got to spend his final day with him on Earth.

00:43:46.620 You know, I got to spend his last breathing hours on Earth.

00:43:50.760 So I'll forever be grateful for that.

00:43:52.440 But, you know, I think the story is, Michael, is we never know when it's our last day, right?

00:43:58.780 You and I are both young, but you never know.

00:44:01.700 You know, he was healthy as a bull, that guy.

00:44:04.360 And, you know, we traveled a bunch.

00:44:06.800 And you never know.

00:44:08.580 You hear Trump say it.

00:44:09.780 When the end is the end.

00:44:11.900 So it's like you really.

00:44:13.380 And I live by this.

00:44:15.180 You know, I live every day like it's my last.

00:44:17.160 And, you know, people are like, oh, you're 30-something years old.

00:44:19.780 You shouldn't be. 1.00

00:44:20.320 That's stupid. 1.00

00:44:20.980 Well, no, because you never know. 1.00

00:44:22.800 I mean, you could be walking to New York City and get hit over the head with a shovel.

00:44:27.740 I mean, anything could happen, especially in the times of today, Michael.

00:44:32.960 Yeah.

00:44:33.420 No, yeah.

00:44:34.020 It's.

00:44:35.360 Appreciate you sharing that.

00:44:36.420 It's just it's so true, though.

00:44:37.500 And, you know, having moments with someone like Lou, you know, I think gives you that perspective to just appreciate those big moments and the small moments because they all add up.

00:44:45.320 And before you know it, 10 years go by and you wish you can go back.

00:44:49.380 Yeah, you're absolutely.

00:44:50.080 Mike, I really appreciate you spending some time with us here at the audience.

00:44:53.580 I really hope the audience enjoyed it because I enjoyed our talk.

00:44:56.520 You know, Michael and I see each other very often for some drinks, one or two, and some cigars every now and then.

00:45:04.600 Yeah.

00:45:05.560 Luckily, we live close to each other.

00:45:08.020 He lives in the armpit of America and dirty New Jersey, a neighbor to Lou Dobbs.

00:45:15.660 But it's always great to see you, Mike. 0.77

00:45:17.800 And I really appreciate it.

00:45:19.040 And I hope, like I said, I hope the audience enjoyed your time here with us today, Mike.

00:45:23.940 Thank you.

00:45:24.420 Appreciate it, John.

00:45:26.120 Thanks, everybody, for being with us today.

00:45:27.600 I really appreciate you joining us.

00:45:29.480 And I hope you enjoyed my talk with my good friend, Michael Biondi.

00:45:33.240 Hell of a friend.

00:45:34.120 Hell of a producer.

00:45:35.380 And like I said, I came into this business. 0.96

00:45:37.160 I didn't know a damn thing. 0.85

00:45:38.120 And he taught me everything I knew. 0.74

00:45:40.540 And I remember looking at him like, why are you telling me all this?

00:45:43.140 And he's like, because someone taught me.

00:45:45.420 And that's the way things should be these days.

00:45:47.080 Everyone's so nervous about everyone taking each other's jobs or what's going to happen.

00:45:51.420 And I used to say to Lou all the time, I'd say, Lou, the day someone's better at my job than me, I deserve to lose my job.

00:45:58.780 We need more people like my pal, Mike Biondi.

00:46:02.600 Hopefully, he'll come back and work for the show again one day.

00:46:06.280 I miss working with him.

00:46:07.280 I miss bullying him.

00:46:08.380 Folks, we'll see you back here Monday for the Great America Show.

00:46:11.800 I hope you all have a great weekend, a blessed weekend.

00:46:15.100 Tomorrow, next week, we're going to be doing a show from somewhere very special.

00:46:19.820 In fact, the other side of the world.

00:46:21.800 We're going to be broadcasting from Europe.

00:46:24.040 We'll see you on Monday.

00:46:25.400 Until then, may God bless you.

00:46:26.820 May God bless America and may God bless the great, great, great, great, great Lou Dobbs.

00:46:32.160 I love you all.

00:46:32.780 Have a great weekend.

The Great America Show - July 18, 2025

In Memory of THE GREAT LOU DOBBS!

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