Can Trump Save Hollywood?

8 snips

Nov 28, 2025

Brent Gardner, a policy expert from Americans for Prosperity, discusses the decline of Hollywood and its impact on American culture. He highlights how shifting tastes have led to an influx of foreign films that often depict America negatively. The conversation probes how Trump could revitalize the film industry through tax incentives and cultural standards, potentially bringing production back to the U.S. They also address the implications of a new X feature exposing foreign influence on social media and the dangers of algorithm-driven narratives.

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INSIGHT

Hollywood's Shift Away From Mass Appeal

Hollywood shifted in the Obama years toward award-focused, non-English, anti-American films that alienated mainstream audiences.
Josh Holmes argues that populist taste now favors entertaining action and comedies aimed at American viewers.

INSIGHT

Outsourcing Distorts Movie Content

Much film production moved overseas because other countries offered tax incentives and lower costs.
Holmes says those incentives also push content that portrays America poorly to satisfy local cultural tests.

ADVICE

Rebuild Domestic Film Production

Reindustrialize U.S. film production by offering competitive tax incentives to bring shoots back from abroad.
Add cultural benchmarks to incentivize movies that reflect American audiences and reduce foreign influence on content.

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🎙️ The fellas explore the total collapse of Hollywood cinema and what it might mean for the American consumer. We all agree the movies just aren't what they used to be—you can't find a good, simple action flick or comedy anymore. Holmes points out how the shift happened during the Obama years, moving toward terrible, non-English, anti-American award bait.

🎬 The fellas drive home that Trump's greater influence lies not just in movie preferences but in reindustrializing the American film industry. We discussed how high taxes and regulations in California led to outsourcing production overseas, particularly to countries that incentivize making content with a cultural disposition that shows America in the worst possible light. If Trump provided competitive tax incentives to bring film production back home and coupled that with cultural benchmarks, it could reinvigorate American movies made for an American audience.

📱 Then, a new transparency feature comes to X and exposes the location of popular accounts. Many accounts posing as American patriots or constitutionalists are actually based in foreign countries. We explain how mainstream media journos rely on X's algorithm for "sentiment analysis" from "the base," which is easily polluted by these foreign accounts. Is it time to get rid of the algorithm entirely and return to a chronological timeline.

🐎 In variety: there’s a Namibian politician with the most unfortunate name as the most famous dictator in history. We can't believe a name like that not only exists but gets re-elected. Then, an absolutely insane clip of a rogue ambulance driving onto the inside rail of a track during a horse race in Louisiana

🐘 We wrap with Brent Gardner from AFP about the legislative agenda for the end of the year, focusing on energy permitting reform to boost American production and healthcare reform. We also hit on the importance of the NDAA as a vehicle for AI preemption legislation to ensure the US remains the global leader in technology.

00:00 - The Fellas on Hollywood's Decline and Trump's Cultural Reach

03:14 - Why Modern Movies Suck and Trump's Plan to Reindustrialize American Cinema

08:50 - Discussing Ben Smith's Semafor Article on Trump and Hollywood

15:59 - Hollywood Outsourcing Problem

28:52 - X’s New Transparency Feature

47:46 - Can We Fix X

52:32 - Unfortunate Politico Name and Wrong Way Driver In THE WORST Place

01:03:30 - Brent Gardner (AFP) on the Congressional Sprint to the End of the Year

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