tv Smerconish CNN February 11, 2023 12:00pm-1:00pm PST
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flyover to kick off tomorrow's 57th super bowl between the kansas chiefs the philadelphia eagles. the team will commemorate 50 years of women flying in the u.s. navy. the first eight women began flight school in pensacola, florida, in 1973, and according to the navy, the aircraft in tomorrow's flyover represents the capabilities of the carrier air wing of the future. the flyover normally comes at the crescendo of "the star spangled banner," signaling the action is just minutes away. thank you so much for being with me. i'm fredricka whitfield. the "cnn newsroom" continues with jim acosta right now.
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i'm michael smerconish in philadelphia. for the second time in less than a week, u.s. fighter jets have shot down an object in u.s. airspace. on friday president biden gave the order to shoot down a, quote, high altitude object hovering ten miles off the coast of alaska. of course, last saturday fighter jets shot down a suspected chinese spy balloon in the atlantic ocean after flying across the entire country. joining me to discuss the retired air force lieutenant general, the air force's first chief of intelligence, surveillance and reconnoissance. he's a fighter pilot with more than 3,000 flying hours. he was the principal attack planner for the operation desert storm air campaign, commander of no fly operations over iraq and served on two congressional commissions focused on america's future defense strategy. these days he's the dean of aerospace studies. so what is norad's responsibility and what's the
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framework through which it determines a course of action? >> well, michael, it's good to see you again. it's been quite a week for the commander of north american air defense command. essentially their responsibility is to provide aerospace warning, ensure air sovereignty, and then protect the canadian airspace, as well as the continental united states. so they've certainly had their hands full in these past two weeks. >> of what significance in this st instance is the altitude? >> it's a great question and that's what the differentiator was between the chinese spy balloon and this particular undesignated flying object so far, in that this object that was sit here today down yesterday was about 25,000 feet lower than the chinese balloon
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that entered u.s. air space about two weeks ago. so that puts it at about 40,000 feet and that makes it a possible collision hazard for commercial airliners. so that was the logic for shooting it down once it was identified as being uninhabited. >> are there other civilian objects, other meaning beyond aircraft, commercial aircraft, at that level? i'm trying to ask and not be so naive. but how much stuff is floating around at that height? >> not a lot. but 40,000 feet is particularly over alaska, one might think, jeez, alaska is way out away from everything. but when you think about it, airliners fly what are known as great circle routes. so when you have airline traffic going from the east coast of the united states, say, over to anywhere in asia, japan, china,
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australia, thailand, india, they head over alaska. so it is a concern that any object flying in that airspace, particularly if it's not controlled like it appears this one wasn't. quite frankly, the classification of this object is pretty quizzical, because, first, there's been no indication of its origin, second, it was described in the short news conference that the pentagon had as not resembling an aircraft. but then, again, they didn't confirm that it was a balloon. so it will remain an unidentified flying object until we get further verification of what it might have been. >> still more unknown than known. general, thank you so much for coming back. i'm not sure if i'll see you next week at this time, but keep your schedule clear, if you can. >> yes, sir. you have a great day.
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now, is america sleepwalking into world war iii? a ukrainian security official is warning russia is preparing for, quote, maximum escalation in the war. and just yesterday russia launched a massive attack on ukraine's already damaged infrastructure, temporarily knocking out a third of its heat and power plants. the "washington post" reporting the pentagon is urging congress to resume funding to top secret programs in ukraine that were suspended. critics, including some on capitol hill, say such activities risk drawing the united states into a more direct role in the ukraine war. is that a valid worry, or are we in denial about how involved america already is in the war? we're coming up on the one-year anniversary of russia's invasion of ukraine. all along, the u.s. has been helping with financial aid and weaponry, dolling it out in increments, while always drawing a line and then usually crossing
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that line. as ukraine's defense minister has remarked, all types of assistance at the beginning went through the no stage, which means no as of today. last february 25, the day after the invasion, president biden authorized $350 million in security assistance for ukraine. this included anti-armor, small armors and various munitions body armor, as well as stinger antiaircraft missiles. then in early march poland offered to give mig jets to the united states to transfer, but the u.s. declined. instead, the u.s. approved another $200 million in equipment, reported to include the javelin and stinger missiles. then on march 16th, after ukrainian president zelenskyy addressed congress, they announced $800 million, including helicopters, drones and multi-purpose vehicle. then came laser-guided missile systems. by the end of april, the total
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security aid was around $3.5 million since the start of the war. ukraine repeatedly asked for patriot missiles and after ten months of not fulfilling the request. the u.s. announced in december that it will now be sending them. but the pentagon said that it would not be sending ukraine abrams tanks because they're complicated, expensive and hard to train on. then in january the pentagon confirmed it would provide ukraine with 31 abrams tanks, meaning germany would also send tanks. bradley infantry, air defense systems and striker armor personal carriers, february 3rd package included ground-launched small diameter bombs. since the invasion, the united states has invested nearly $30 billion in ukraine. when does all of this add up to actually being at war with russia? well, the pentagon again reversed itself and will they send f-16 fighter jets?
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what's the best path forward? i asked that of former nato supreme allied commander, the retired james stavridis on my program this week. >> final question, should we continue to roll out our aid incrementally or do it more swiftly? >> yeah, that would be a good question for the smerconish question of the day. >> wouldn't it? thank you. >> yeah, jim stavridis votes for throw the kitchen sink at it now. >> wow. >> we have been too incremental, too timid to date, and all it has produced is more aggressive activity on the part of russia. now is the time to really hit the gas. >> okay. i want to know what you think. go to smerconish.com. that is the poll question of the week. should u.s. military aid to ukraine continue to grow incrementally, swiftly, or not at all? joining me now to discuss is a
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retired army colonel who served 30 years as a military intelligence officer, led the u.s.-european command intelligence commission from 2012 to 2014 and recently co-wrote this piece that caught my high in "the hill", is the biden administration late to world war iii? thanks for being here. you've written that a dystopian form of world war iii is already upon us. what does that mean? >> thank you, first of all, for having me on the show. appreciate the opportunity to come on and talk about ukraine. look, from my perspective, as some of the other guests have made, we're already decisively engaged in this war. we don't have boots on the ground, obviously, but we are committed. we're commit in resources, we're committed in humanitarian assistance, we're committed in intense and we're committed in logistics. we're all in. but it's not just us that are all in.
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it's nato, it's the european union, and on the russian side it's belarus, it's china, it's iran and north korea. so it is a world war that's contained to within the borders of ukraine. the combatants, of course, are russia and ukraine, with a mixture of mercenaries from the wagner group and forces from chechnya and volunteer fighters that are coming in on their own to support either side. so it is a world war. we are engaged. but, unfortunately, as you also said previously, it's a defensive war and it's been called that from the first day. it's defend, it's unite, it's deter aggression, it's stand beside ukraine to the end, it's protect the sovereign territory. it's all of those things. but until it becomes win this war and those words are just uttered on 8 of february by the french president, nothing is
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going to change. it has to be win and it has to be an admiral saying you have to enable the offensive capability to reach out and strike targets that are striking ukraine. those missiles that you talked about, the cruise missiles and drones are not being fired from within ukraine. they're being fired from bell abuse, the sea and russia. so until you can affect the battle that's affecting you, you're playing whack a mole on the battlefield. >> from my perspective, the state of the union address was largely about domestic issues, the interplay with republicans in the house about entitlements. that was the headline. the first reference to ukraine, as best as i recall, didn't come until pretty late in the speech. the president said it's a battle for the ages or words to that effect, colonel. what's your thought? we're all in, does the white house need to be telling the american people, hey, this is real and we are all in? >> we have to prepare the american people for a long-term
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conflict, because a perpetual battle goes on until it stops. putin is not intent to stop. putin has already acknowledged he's going to immobilize another 5 hundred,000, he wants to expand the military to 1.5 million and win the war in ukraine. he's going to continue to commit forces to ukraine and we're going to continue to commit weapons and ammunition for ukraine to defend themselves. it's a war without end. it's exactly what the president told us a year ago, he no longer wanted to commit the united states to wars we're not in. we're not losing americans, but we are invested in financially, as you said, millions of dollars, billions of dollars. where does that end? if we don't have a strategy, and right now we don't have a clear end state. it's just to survive. it has to be to win. and we didn't hear that in the speech on tuesday. >> what's your answer to my poll question of the week?
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this incremental approach, is it time for, instead, as admiral stavridis says, to throw in the kitchen sink? >> i agree. it's time to enable them with every system that we can. look, they can't sit back and continue to absorb. they have to be able to get out and maneuver and dictate and shape conditions on the battlefield. they have to be able to hit the troop formations before they arrive on the battlefield, not wait for them to come. and they have to do that with what we talked about, the ground launch, harpoon missiles to reach the ships firing from the black sea. if we're not going to give them f-16s, let's take poland up on the mig 29s. >> well, the president is headed there this month to mark the one-year anniversary. colonel, thank you so much. i appreciated the piece you wrote in "the hill". thank you for being here to
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discuss it. >> thank you very much. i appreciate the time. >> make sure you hit me up on social media. tell me what you're thinking as the program progresses. i'll read some throughout the course of the program. this comes from the world of youtube, i think. my fear is that the more we support ukraine, the more desperate putin becomes, the greater the risk of putin using nuclear weapons. i don't have have an informed opinion on this. i don't know. from the sidelines just speculating, it seems as if this incremental approach is predicated on a belief initially we're going to give ukraine what they needed to resist. and then because of the strength of the ukrainian fighters, more of a mind-set has become, hey, they can win this thing. also we have to define what winning is. and along the way it seems that the concern over putin going nuclear has diminished. that's what it seems like to me from many thousands of miles away. i want to know what everybody thinks. please vote on this week's poll question at smerconish.com. every time we've asked about ukraine in the past, i just want to note this, the most mill
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terromil millmilitary response is there. should u.s. military aid to ukraine continue to grow incrementally, swiftly or not at all? ahead, it's the biggest weekend for sports gambling, but what if instead of betting on whether the eagles are in the lead at half-time. now the government is trying to shut a website down. and the freedom to change jobs. why the federal trade commission wants to ban noncompete clauses, saying they harm the u.s. labor market. i heard about the payroll tax refund that allowed us to keep the people that have been here taking care of us. learn more at getrefunds.com. on the next episode of "tv dad"... kids are so expensive, dad.
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- why are these so bad? - if i would've used kayak to book our car, we could have saved on our trip instead of during our trip. ughh - kayak. search one and done. it's it's the biggest betting weekend of the year. gamblers in the u.s. expected to bet $16 billion on super bowl lvii, more than last year's record. should americans be allowed to bet on political outcomes? commercial political gambling is illegal in the u.s. but the popular betting site predict it found a workaround. and now the government is trying to shut it down.
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the legal battle is currently playing itself out in federal court, the u.s. court of appeals for the fifth circuit, which heard arguments this week on before predictit can keep operating. think of it like sports gambling but on political outcomes. joe biden currently trading at 60 cents a share to be the 2024 democratic nominee. if that happens, people who bought a stake can sell each share for the full dollar. donald trump currently trading at 37 cents per share to be the gop nominee, tied with florida governor ron desantis. by next guest, john aristotle phillips, created predictit, in conjunction with the university of wellington. the federal agency that regulates the markets, the commodity futures trading commission, allowed the market originally with a no action letter, meaning it could run as an academic exercise. so predictit has been operating under restrictions. bets are capped at $850 limits, no mar than 5,000 people can be in any given market at a time.
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no contracts are allowed on sports or if somebody is going to kid or get kidnapped. now the cftc wants to shut the market down saying it's expanded beyond its educational roots. phillips is fighting back. and, by the way, he has a most unusual backstory. he first became famous in 1976 as the a-bomb kid, when as a princeton undergraduate he created a 34-page how-to guide for building a nuclear weapon using publicly available information. in 1978 he coauthored a book called "mushroom: the story of the a-bomb kid". john joins me now. good to see you. why is this legal, where in the united states generally we prohibit wagering on elections? >> first of all, michael, thanks for having me on. it's good to be back on, actually. so this is specifically permitted under no action relief granted by the agency eight and
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a half years ago, to victoria university, and to predictit, to enable small dollar wagers on future political events. it's specifically permitted. the question is, why is the government trying to take away that permission at this time? we've got 80,000 traders in all the markets. and as you say, there are specific limits. these are install dollar forecasts. and it is a collection of educators and traders and others who are suing the government to prevent the revocation of that permission. >> is the concern that this could corrupt the process if it were more widespread? >> well, we don't know the reason, because the cftc has never specified a reason for revocation, and that is illegal.
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government agencies under the administrative procedures act need to specify, they need to give an opportunity for whoever they are try to go shut down or interfere with to correct whatever the alleged problem is. none of that was offered in this case. it was abrupt and arbitrary. so whether there's a concern about the impact on elections or not, it's hard to see how in a democracy like the united states that billions and billions and billions of dollars are being spent on political campaigns, with hundreds of millions of people participating at the polling place, how a small dollar wager or forecast would negatively affect it. i would say that it's a positive impact because studies show that these people who have a little bit of skin in the game, whether it's a sporting event or a political event, they pay more attention to the political news and they are more likely to be able to filter out fake news, which is a much bigger threat to
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our democratic process. >> john, is there anything to be learned from these markets? i want to put a couple of things on the screen. first of all, let's talk about the gop 2024 nomination fight. the polls that i've seen say that right now in a multi-candidate field, it's like trump at about 50% and desantis at 25% to 30%. in your market it's 37 cents and they're deadlocked. now i'm going to put up another one. which party wins the presidency in 2024? democrats 51 cents, republicans 250. and 2024 presidential election winner joe biden, 34 cents. desantis ahead of trump, 29 cents versus 26. the pollster do modeling. the pollsters want to make sure they've got demographic balance, geographical balance, gender balance. i don't know who is betting on this site. do you think that these folks who are wagering know a little
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something? >> oh, i think that -- look, markets are very predictive of future events, whether it's the price of oil a year from now or how many hurricanes there are going to be. markets are very affected. markets aren't perfect and predictit is not perfect, but it vastly outperforms public opinion polling. polling is great if you want to understand why people feel the way they do. but it's not so good in terms of forecasting future events. markets, they generally beat polling for accuracy consistently. and that's why there are more than 100 universities that are using the trading data to understand what makes for a super forecaster, why are markets so predictive. sometimes markets aren't predictive, and why is that? so there's a lot of research
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being done. in terms of the recipients of the data, it's 100 plus universities, but it's also organizations like the federal reserve get anonymous trading data to understand how markets are forecasting future events. it's crazy that one branch of the government is trying to shut it down after eight and a half years of seamless operation and highly accurate forecasts. >> john, thank you. it will be interesting to see how this all plays itself out. bet with your head, not over it. thank you, john aristotle phillips. >> thank you, michael. from the world of social media, what are people saying about this issue? i think betting on elections will only draw the group that bets on anything rather than election fanatics. i hear his point that people have skin in the game and they want to be participating in the process if they've got something riding on it. i could also say we all already
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have a lot riding on elections. but i happen to enjoy it. i want to remind you, go to my website web website smerconish.com, should u.s. military aid to ukraine continue to grow incrementally, swiftly or not at all? ahead, yes, it's true, here in philadelphia they're already greasing the poles ahead of the super bowl tomorrow, eagles and kansas chiefs. the man, the legend, bob costas is here on the rowdy eagle fans and the history-making quarterbacks squaring off in su super bowl lvii. use tools, and paper trading to help sharpen your skills, you can stay on top of the market from wherever you are. power e*trade's easy-to-use tools make complex trading less complicated. custom scans help you find new trading opportunities. while an earnings tool helps you plan your trades and stay on top of the market.
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chiefs patrick mahomes. in addition to the talent on the field, the infamous philadelphia eagle fan base will be out in full force. nfl commissioner goodell gave them a shout-out when he asked about getting booed every year at the draft. >> i love it personally because it's a way for fans to interact. it's a way for them to be part of it. philadelphia fans are pretty good at booing, let me just tell you. >> joining me now to discuss the big game, cnn contributor and sports broadcasting legend, bob costas, host for seven super bowls. great to see you. let's talk philly fans. put aside the throwing snowballs at santa or the buddy ryan bounty bowl, which i remember well. the schools here already have announced they're going to open two hours late on monday. is there any other city as emotional about its teams? >> well, if we just confine it
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to the nfl, if buffalo were to win the super bowl, they've been to four super bowls historically, four in a row back in the early '90s, and lost them all. i think buffalo would have a certain kind of reaction. if the cleveland browns ever did it, you think of cleveland overall, there's definitely a sense of resentment there. going into next season, it will have been 75 years since the once cleveland indians, now cleveland guardians, won the world series with the red sox, the white sox, and the cubs breaking through in the 21st century. that's the longest drought in all of american team sports if my calculations are correct, certainly in baseball. lebron james helped the cavaliers win one title, but the browns haven't won one since 1964. and we know that, you know, in cleveland there's a lot of pent-up emotion. so maybe cleveland, maybe buffalo. but i get your point about philadelphia.
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>> this quarterback matchup, the first that it represents, mahomes and jalen hurts, talk to me about that rivalry and whether you've seen anything like it. >> well, in terms of anticipation of a quarterback matchup, i think we've seen things to equal or even exceed it. when the dolphins played the niners in the mid-80s, you had a dan marino and joe montana matchup. it was a different era in the nfl. he didn't just break the record, shattered it by a dozen touchdown passes for a season. and montana had already won one super bowl, that proved to be the second of four that he would win. so montana/marino was a hall of fame matchup. if you go back to the super bowl iii, you had young joe namath against the baltimore colts. johnny unitas came in, the new
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age and the old. the super bowls of the '70s, quart cowboys and steelers. i get your point. this one is significant not just because both are good quarterbacks. mahomes is a great quarterback. that's been established. but it's the first time, as you say, that by happenstance, it's two black starting quarterbacks in the super bowl. but there have been many black quarterbacks already in the super bowl. it is no longer headline news when a black quarterback happens to start a game in the nfl. the big problem now is better representation among black head coaches, although it's interesting to note that we go back, what, 17 years or whatever it is, 16 years, i guess, to 2007 when the colts played the bears in the super bowl, and you had two black head coaches in a league that still has not come close to resolving the problem with inclusion for black head
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coaches. but tony dungy coached the colts to victory. i think it's more coincidental than consequential that there happen to be two black quarterbacks in this particular game because black quarterbacks are now commonplace around the nfl and many have played in the super bowl already. >> you know that concerns about the safety of the sport puersis. i'm sure you saw there was litigation by veterans who say they weren't provided their full disability benefits. and you laid down a marker on this issue long before anybody else. i guess the question i want to ask is, does any of it matter to the fans? because the thirst for this game tomorrow and to watch the nfl generally seems unabated. >> the super bowl has long been a national holiday. football has advantages, especially the nfl, over other sports. each team plays only once a week, generally at a time of
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year when people are at home, in the fall and winter. every playoff game is the equivalent of a seventh game in baseball, basketball, or hockey. so you have all of that going for it. it televised well. speaking of television, this is important, most other sports have sold a good part of their inventory to cable. there's nothing wrong with that. most of the cable presentations are excellent. but it takes it away, even as the landscape changes, it still matters that virtually every nfl game and every one of importance, is on broadcast television. it's more broadly accessible. for some people it's an obsession, for others it's a passing interest. there are some who have turned away from the game because of its undeniable pbrutality. there's a larger number that recognize it but somehow make their peace. and that includes many people who cover the game. they can't help but know the reality of what it does to a very large percentage of its long-term participants, but
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there's a draw to it. the generational connections, the strategy, the drama, the excitement of it. that's all undeniable. so, too, is the toll that it takes on too many of its players. >> very quickly, you referenced lebron. it's not football related. i saw something on youtube that i have to show. it's lebron james about to enter from high school the nba. can we quickly roll that clip and ask for bob's quick updated reaction? play it. >> how does it feel to know that if you're not eventually a hall of fame caliber player, it's not good enough to be good or an all-star, if you're not eventually a first rank hall of famer, a lot of people will say you were a bust or overhyped. >> how does that make me feel? >> yeah. >> i don't think of it as looking into the future. i take every moment at a time. you're not promised tomorrow. and that's what my mom brought me up on and i always said that i'm just trying to get better
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every day at what i do. >> so, bob costas, bust or overhyped, you would not attach to lebron james today. >> no, not only did he meet every expectation, he exceeded them. and i wasn't putting those expectations on him. i was summarizing what was already out there. that was the feeling that was out there. >> right. >> this guy has got to be an all-time great. and i was very impressed at age 18 how well he handled all of that, how level-headed he was. and for the most part, he has gone on to be not just a great, great player, but an admirable person as well. >> thank you so much for being here. you know i love having you on the program. thank you, bob. >> you've got it, michael. good luck to the birds tomorrow. to the chiefs as well, so i can remain neutral. >> amen. okay. i want to remind everybody, answer this week's poll question at smerconish.com. it's the question retired navy
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admiral james stavridis but on my radar. should the u.s. provide aid to ukrainian incrementally, swiftly or not at all? i once signed a noncompete clause preventing me from leaving and working for a rival. it turns out such restrictions affect more than 30 million americans from cooks to ceos. now the biden administration is pushing to end the practice. will that happen? so thank you. we hope you like your work. (♪ ♪) ♪ what will you do? will you make something better? create something new? our dell technologies advisors can provide you with the tools and expertise you need to bring out the innovator in you. i just always thought, “dog food is dog food” i didn't really piece together that dogs eat food. as soon as we brought the farmer's dog in, her skin was better, she was more active. if i can invest in her health and be proactive,
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psst. virtual real estate is a lock. ♪ cold hard cash ♪ j.p. morgan wealth management knows the world is full of financial noise. i'm looking at your asset mix and plan. you are right on track. great, thanks. our easy-to-use app and local advisors are here to help you figure out what's right for your investments. j.p. morgan wealth management. are noncompete contract clauses about to be nixed? president biden said as much in his state of the union address this week. let me read to you some legalese. here it is. it is therefore agreed that after this agreement expires or is terminated for a period of six months, contractor shall not allow and artist shall not appear, perform or allow artist's voice or picture to be heard or transmitted live or by recording on any radio station
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within a 50-mile radius of station. that is a noncompete pulled from an old radio contract of mine. it would have kept me unemployed for six months, and i fwagreed it. i thought i had to. i thought it was the cost of being a radio host or a television personality. but like the president, i have since come to realize that noncompetes are much more pervasive than just among media folk. those 30 million americans that the president referenced in his state of the union include ceos and construction workers, hospitality employees, chefs. i even had a guy call my radio program this week and tell me he was subject to one as a new jersey gas station attendant. but as the president said, the federal trade commission is proposing banning all noncompete clauses and rescinding all existing ones, saying they hurt workers and competing businesses. the proposal is currently in the public comments stage. so joining me to discuss is elizabeth wilkins, director of
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the ftc's office of policy planning. nice to see you. in what profession have you been most surprised to find there are noncompetes? >> well, as you say, there are a lot of people who are subject to these clauses. folks, think about people in the boardroom, folks who might have access to confidential information, but, honestly, to my mind, hair stylists, as you say, construction workers, security guards. we had a case about security guards who were subject to a noncompete not to work within 100 miles of their job site with a penalty of $100,000. these are minimum wage security guards. there's really a wide swath of people who are subject to these and the penalties can be severe. as you said, folks think, if i leave this job, i'm going to have to move or change professions to be able to work again. i can't afford that. people feel really trapped. >> i know that the u.s. chamber of commerce has come out against
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the position taken by the biden administration and the ftc. i guess the question i want to ask, is why can't the market sort this out? if you go to an employer and they're going to impose a noncompete, then go to a different employer. >> michael, i think you said it the best yourself. folks think they have to sign these, they don't think they have a choice. and that's even if they realize that they're signing one. i don't know what you thought the last time you started a job, but i know when i did, i had already quit my old job, accepted a new one. somebody handed me a stack of hr paperwork, which i signed. if there was a noncompete in there, and i'm a lawyer, i might not oeven know. so sometimes folks don't know they are trapped until they try and leave. >> is it best handled by the federal government through what the ftc is seeking to do? i know that some states, california comes to mind, finds them unenforceable. is this an area where you have to have federal action? >> so one of the most disturbing
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things that we find in the evidence is that in states like california where noncompetes are unenforceable, they are in just as many contracts as where they are enforceable. if you're a worker, you probably don't know what the state law is on your noncompete clause in your employment contract. what that means is that those causes, even though they're unenforceable, can have the same effect of chilling workers for looking for new jobs, better pay, better working conditions, and ultimately being a productive worker for our economy. so we do think a federal rule that's very clear will have a major impact for workers. there was a recent poll that said that two in five americans who were polled would be more likely to switch jobs if this rule were enacted. that's a huge, huge impact. the other thing that's important to know is, you know, labor markets aren't confined to one
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state or the other. so if we really want to see the important impacts, and i should say they are important, we estimate that wages could increase by $250 to $300 billion if noncompete clauses were banned. we want to see those kind of impacts for workers. >> elizabeth, this is a complicated aspect, but i have to get it in. intellectual property rights. isn't that a justification for maintaining noncompete agreements? we don't want you to go across town and take our proprietary information. >> that is a justification that we hear from employers. employers have other options. 97% of workers who are subject to a noncompete are also subject to something like a nondisclosure agreement or other protections that employers can have to protect their confidential information. there's also trade secret law. all of these other alternatives don't have the severe consequences for workers. >> i never -- as i said at the outset, i never knew. i just figured i'm a radio guy.
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this was 10, 15 years ago, and i guess this comes with the territory. i didn't realize that one in five americans are treated the same way. thank you so much for being here. appreciate your time. >> thanks for having me. let's check in on social media, reaction to this issue. we're in the midst of, i guess it's a 60-day comment period. there are reasonable noncompetes and there are oppressive versions. let's not throw the baby out with the bath water. i think i just brought one up at the end. the whole intellectual property argument to me seems like a valid justification. and with no disrespect to hairdressers, i can't imagine that there's proprietary information that goes with that turf. so as is usually the case, in certain circumstances it's warranted and in the extreme cases of all or nothing, it probably doesn't make sense. still to come, have you voted yet? more to come on social media and the result of this week's poll
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question. please go vote at smerconish.com. perhaps you'll register for the daily newsletter while you're there. should u.s. military aid to ukraine continue to grow incrementally, swiftly, or not at all? innersprings, for a beautiful mattress, and indescribable comfort. for a limited time, save up to $800 on select stearns & foster® adjustable mattresses sets. think he's posting about all that ancient roman coinage? no. he's making real-time money moves with merrill.
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so far because i leave the poll questions up every day all day. 35,000 votes and, again, the most militaristic response wins. admiral retis wins. throw in the kitchen sink. limited time for social media. here's some of what came in during the course of the program. real quick, need to works for a negotiated conclusion. yeah, i wonder, ken, how much conversation is taking place on that front. i hope so. ment how do you define victory for ukraine is also the big x the unknown. thank you for watching. enjoy the game. national university. supporting the whole you. how do i do it all? with a little help. and to support my family's immune health, i choose airborne. unlike some others, airborne gives you vitamin c and so much more. it's an 8 in 1 immune support formula.
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