elections have consequences. especially 2016. i'm michael smerconish in philadelphia. the supreme court, one-third comprised by appointees of former president donald trump, just ended a most consequential term. voting rights, affirmative action, student loans and adoption. this on top of last year's rulings concerns abortion, guns, religion and climate change. yesterday, the court released a much anticipated opinion concerning speech and gay rights.

at issue, a colorado business seeking permission not to work for same-sex wedding couples, only this time it wasn't the baker. that case was decided in 2018 when jack phillips refused to make a wedding cake for a gay couple. back then the court narrowly decided for the baker but didn't determine whether a business owner's speech writes can justify refusing service to gay couples. well, five miles from the colorado baker is a graphic artist named lorie smith who will join me momentarily. she said she didn't want to create any same-sex wedding message at odds with her religious beliefs. she said she had never received a request to design a same-sex couple site, nor had she turned anyone down. smith won. a majority of the court saw colorado's public accommodation laws an unconstitutional attempt by the state to compel her speech. the minority cast the outcome as the first time the court permitted a commercial business to refuse service to a protected

class. justice neil gorsuch wrote the majority opinion in which he stated this t all manner of speech from pictures, films, paintings, drawings and engravers, to oral utterance and the printed word qualify for the first amendment protections. no less can hold true when it comes to speech like miss smith's conveyed over the internet. lawyers and law schools love hypotheticals and both sides came well armed. justice gorsuch's majority warned if the state were successful, the government could similarly require an unwilling muslim movie director to make a film with a zionist message or atheist muralist to accept a commission celebrating evangelical zeal so long as they would make films or murals for other members of the public with different messages. or the government could enforce a male website designer married to another man to design websites for an organization that advocates against same-sex marriage.

justice soet may minority opinion responded in kind. she raised the example of a professional photographer who is generally free to choose her subjects. she can make a living taking photos of flowers or celebrities. the state doesn't regulate that choice. but, she said, if the photographer opens a portrait photography business to the public, the business may not then deny to any person because of race, sex, national origin or other protected characteristic the full and equal enjoyment of whatever services the business chooses to offer. if the business offers corporate head shots, it may not then deny those service to say women because the owner believes a woman's place is in the home. nor, sotomayor argued, can a website designer refuse to create a wedding website for an interracial couple based on the opinion that the almighty god did not intend for the races to mix.

could a stationer refuse to sell a birth announcement for a disabled couple because she opposes their having a child? and what about a charge retail store that wishes to reserve family portrait services for traditional families? where would the slippery slope end? president biden weighed in calling the decision disappointing and said that he feared the exclusion of gays and other minorities by businesses. joining me are the successful plaintiff in the website ruling lorie smith and her attorney kristin wagner. she personally has argued three cases before the supreme court. the ceo and president of a faith-based legal organization that won 15 cases at scotus and assisted in the legal team that overturned roe v. wade. lorie, thank you for being here. hypothetical for you. if a gay man who is a realtor asked you to design a website for his business, are you taking that job? >> of course. and it's not a hypothetical. i have clients who identify as lgbtq. i work with clients from all

walks of life. i can't create every message requested of me. >> you do a great job. hypothetical number two. then i'll get off the hypotheticals at least for now. you do a great job for a man and woman getting married. a same-sex couple see the website you create and say we want exactly that. just change the pictures and change the date. don't do anything else. give us what you gave them. how about that? >> i don't specialize in that type of speech. everything i create is unique and one of a kind. i am always looking at the message i'm being asked to create. what's important to emphasize here for the last seven years the state of colorado has been silencing and coercing my speech and forcing me to create a message i don't wish to create. nobody should be put in that position and the court's decision yesterday protects speech, not just for me, for the lgbtq website designer and every other artist out there.

nobody should be punished by the government for speaking consistent with their beliefs. >> counselor, i see you shaking your head. let me ask you a question. i read the opinion last night. it's great reading, both the majority and the minority view, and i recommend that americans who are interested take the time to do so. it's written mostly in plain speak. i thought before i read it that this was going to be largely predicated on lorie's religious beliefs and that is not my takeaway. instead, it's about her speech, but it makes me wonder, okay, what about someone who is just uncomfortable with whatever might be the client in front of them having nothing to do with faith. doesn't that open the door for animus to be a determinant? >> the decision does not do that at all. it reaffirmed a principle in the constitution, which is that the first amendment follows a golden rule. we need to protect speech for

others, even those we disagree with. they certainly can't deny service because they feel uncomfortable. the court's ruling says that non-discrimination laws continue to apply to ensure that people can't be denied services or goods because of a protected characteristic. it also says no matter who you are, the government can't force you to say something that you don't believe, and that's a win for everyone. >> right. you make it sound as if these are black and white determinations though. i think a lot of this is in the gray area. what exactly is speech? i don't know why so much of this litigation is in a wedding context. okay, i'll roll with it. so i guess the baker is speaking. i guess the website designer, your client is speaking, presumably the florist is speaking, the photographer. what about the stagehand? what about the wedding singer? what about the ancillary businesses? are they all offering speech or doing a job like they would do for any other couple? >> if they are doing a job and

there is not speech involved, then the nondiscrimination principles apply and the first amendment does not in the free speech context. i think you are overcomplicating it. the majority decision by justice gorsuch is clear. there are clear tests in the law as to when speech is involved. we know when speech is involved. and here we have the written printed word. so there is no question that speech is involved. and in terms of justice sotomayor's dissent, as the majority said, she's litigating a case that wasn't even before the court and on entirely different facts. like you said, americans should read the decision and decide for themselves. >> okay. i am in my hypothetical, counselor, i am an atheist and i am in one of these ancillary businesses and when couples get together in a non-religious environment or ceremony, i'm going to provide my services. wait a minute. this is a religious wedding? i don't want a part of that. is that okay?

>> well, i am not sure what your atheist is doing. what matters is are they being asked to -- >> i am a florist. i am a photographer. i am a web designer or a baker. i am an atheist and i only provide services for fellow atheists even though i hold myself out to the public. >> it's about what the speech is that's being requested. lorie has always made distinctions based on what the message is that she is asked to give voice to and that's a critical distinction that the court reaffirmed. the test has always been whether the speaker's message is affected by what the government wants them to say. that's the test that we will continue to apply. the court didn't create new law. they applied it in a cultural moment where some disagree with lorie's message. it's important to stick to protecting freedom because political and cultural winds shift. if the government can compel lorie, it can compel the lgbtq website designer as well. we all need to remember that as well. >> this is a law school dream, this case. lorie, a final one for you.

think of the pharmacist called upon to fill a prescription for birth control who has a religious objection to doing so. i would say, hey, you chose to be a pharmacist and if it you have trouble providing this service, maybe this is not a gig for you. what about someone who says if you want to be a web designer, you've got to serve everybody and your religion can't come into it? you get the final word. >> my final word is this, i create speech for a living. when speech is involved, speech should be protected. this protects not just me, but the lgbt website designer, the jewish calligraphy, the democrats speech writer. we benefit from the court's ruling yesterday. >> to be continued. thank you both so much for being here. >> thank you. >> i am inspired for the poll question to ask you the following. here it is. go to smerconish.com and tell me -- and maybe it's a loaded question because of the subject

i just discussed and all the news of the week. but i want to hear what you think. which is having the greatest impact on american lives? president biden? is it the congress? is it the supreme court? by the way, when you go to smerconish.com you will see a new feature where you can live chat during the program. we will be pulling some of your comments for me to respond to during the course -- there it is, highlighted at the top of the page. hit me up on social media. this comes, i think, from youtube. what do we have, katherine? i could have continued that segment forever. business owners who want to make money. what is wrong with that woman? how much business will she lose because of her bigotry? you say bigotry, and you hear what i think, i think it's obvious. i welcome those guests, i love this conversation. but if you sign up for a particular job, you've got to do the job. and when public accommodation butts up against her speech right, i don't think it's an easy call. i'll say that. ahead, an irs whistleblower

claims that the agency was thwarted from fully investigating hunter biden and joe. ag merrick garland says he didn't interfere. the ag hasn't responded since claims were made public. will we get a definitive answer? in 1990, tom stuker bought a lifetime pass on united airlines and now he has flown more than 23 million miles. well, he has landed at cnn for a layover to tell us what it's like to be the world's most frequent flyer.

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imagine if you could hop on an airplane anywhere in world at a moment's notice without thinking about the cost. well, that's the life that my next guest lives. tom stuker is a sales and management consultant working in the auto industry. in 1990, united airlines was offering customers a lifetime flying pass for unlimited travel. stuker jumped at the chance to invest in a companion pass. that means that for the then-hefty price of $510,000 he could fly with a partner first class on any future united airlines flight.

he is 69. he's traveled more than 23 million miles. for tom, there is no such thing as a once-in-a-lifetime type of trip. he once brought a friend who loves chinese friend to hong kong for a meal and flew to australia for a three-hour 70th birthday party. he and his wife have taken 100 honeymoons. he isn't just leaving with memories. he has been racking up airline points and miles along the way, cashing in on high-end hotel suites, gift cards, cruises and gourmet meals. he once cashed $50,000 worth of walmart gift cards in a single day. he even earned a guest appearance on a "seinfeld" episode on united's dime. with perks like that it's no surprise the airline no longer offers such an extravagant opportunity, yet the company adores him. the airline put his name on two of its airplanes. tom stuker joins me now. thank you for being here. three quick questions at the outset. what's the best seat on the plane? >> my favorite seat is the

bulkhead. domestically i like 1b. and internationally, i like either, especially on the polaris aircraft, which is so great, the 1 apple or 1 lima, the side single seats by the window. it's easy in, easy out. you are close to the bathroom and close to the bar. >> what's the best airport in the world? >> okay, this is a little different. my favorite airport -- there are great things in every airport. my favorite airports are the united hubs. that's just me personally because that's where my united family is. these people are family to me. i get to see my family members at all the hubs. these are my best friends. so spending time with people i know at the airports is more important. other people, they might like hong kong or amsterdam or singapore for how fabulous those

airports are. >> okay, number three. best airline meal, if there is such a thing? >> this is going to sound really -- i like a good steak. united serves some nice ones. but my favorite meal, and they don't have it anymore and i miss it so much, they used to have lobster mac and cheese, going back and forth to australia. that was my favorite! with the garlic bread. it was so good! >> when you enter the plane, when you walk on -- like, i do a lot of flying. nothing like you, believe me. i don't think i have ever recognized a flight attendant and thought to myself, oh, i know her or i know him from a prior flight. when you get onboard, do they all know you? >> not all of them, but especially on international trips, i know an awful -- i would say probably 50% of the flight attendants i have flown with and know. and like i said, the best part, the best part of flying for me is the interaction with the crew.

i love the crews. i have known them, again, they are my family and i have known them forever. they are so great. whether you have never flown before, if you treat the flight attendants and crews nice, they will treat you good, too. show respect to each other. >> a good rule for life. you are in first class 23 million miles worth. i got to believe a lot of celebrities, well-known people. give me one quick celebrity encounter. >> bill murray in the first class lounge chicago. my brother, who is a great bill murray fan, i told bill i think my brother does a better bill murray than he does. my brother had a great -- a tough life with 28 back operations. bill says, get him on the phone. bill called, my brother didn't answer. he left a two-minute message that was just so beautiful. the greatest guy you ever met. bill murray, the celebrity. >> back in 1990, it was a lot of money.

it's a lot of money today. you knew, hey, this is something i got to do and i am going to get the companion pass as well even if it costs me 500? >> it did. and it was not only the best investment for me. a lot of people think it was a bad investment for united. not really. maybe not for me personally, but when they sold these passes, all the airlines had a cash crunch and what they did was brilliant. what they did is say let's get these passes sold, and instead of borrowing money and paying interest, we will just pay it with empty seats later on. i love my united. it's a great -- i love the direction they are going and how they are going green to keep the atmosphere clean for everybody. i love flying. i love flying. and i love the people i meet on the planes and on the ground. that's the best part. >> final question. check a bag, yes or no? >> no, if you can get away with it. i mean, online i am going on a

two-week cruise in august, so i got to check a bag. on business trips where i have to wear suits, yes, check the bag when you have to. avoid it at all costs. i go to hawaii for ten days without a checked bag. they've got laund row laundromats. if i have to buy clothes and donate at the end because i don't have room in the bag. but i like to save 30 minutes at the carousel. >> love it. thank you so much. by the way, second weekend in august i am open. i got nothing on the calendar. >> i think my calendar is pretty full. i mean, i'll be up in those friendly skies just about the rest of the year. >> thank you, tom. appreciate it. >> all right. you bet. thanks for having me. >> you bet. social media, youtube, what do we have? can you imagine? at the time i bet his friends are like, you're crazy! now look. dave says, i flew 1.5 million miles in my career and was worn

out and didn't want to get on a plane for two years after i retired. i can't imagine flying 23. in 2019, he took 373 trips in 365 days. 1.46 million miles. guess what the market value for that one year of flying was? $2.44 million. 2.44 mil, okay? so he got a bargain back in 1990. please make sure you are going to smerconish.com and voting on today's poll question. i wanted you to think about this. yes, i am making a point. i am making a point by asking this question because i know how it's going to end. which is having the greatest impact on american lives? president biden, congress, or the supreme court? up ahead, two irs whistleblowers claim hunter biden deserved more serious charges than he pled guilty to but the probe was hamstrung to protect the president. hunter's lawyer says the whistleblowers are disgruntled

agents with bias and an axe to grind. so which is it? plus, this year has seen a record-shattering number of anti-lbgtq laws and 20 states have passed bans on gender-affirming health care access for transgender children and teenagers. a federal judge after a trial in arkansas struck down that state's law as unconstitutional. i will talk to a doctor who testified in the case and has been treating trans patients for 30 years. buy one footlong in the app, get one free. for freeee. that's what i'm talking about. order in the subway app today.

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can all three be telling the truth? hunter biden's prosecution and plea deal on tax evasion remains a hot button issue as 2024's election heats up, partly because it's unclear whether the irs was thwarted from fully investigating the bidens, including joe. exhibit a.

irs whistleblower gary shapley who oversaw the agency's role in the investigation is claiming that the irs investigators recommended far more serious charges and that the u.s. attorney in delaware overseeing the probe, david weiss, was blocked from bringing charges in other states. shapley says his criticism of the justice department's handling of the case led to him being denied a promotion. here is what he told bret baier on fox news. >> we were conducting an investigation of hunter biden following the normal process, try to go get to the bottom of it, and ultimately if it was going to lead to another individual, we should follow that to determine what actually was happening. but there were definitely hindrances that i have never seen before in my 14 years concerning this investigation that didn't allow us to follow through on the investigation of any other individual to include president biden. >> but how does that square with

exhibit b? when asked about the case, ag merrick garland said this. >> mr. weiss was appointed by president trump as the u.s. attorney in delaware and assigned this matter during the previous administration, would be permitted to continue his investigation and to make a decision to prosecute any way in which he wanted to and in any district in which he wanted to. mr. weiss has since sent a letter to the house judiciary committee confirming that he had that authority. i don't know how it would be possible for anybody to block him from bringing a prosecution given that he has this authority. >> which leads us to a exhibit c, the letter that garland referenced, u.s. attorney weiss wrote this to house judiciary chair jim jordan on june 7th. i have been granted ultimate authority over this matter, including responsibility for deciding where, when, and whether to file charges and for making decisions necessary to preserve the integrity of the

prosecution consistent with federal law, the principles of federal prosecution and departmental regulations. but according to shapley's testimony in mid 2022 weiss reached out to the top federal prosecutor in washington to ask his office to pursue charges and was rebuffed, as was a similar request to prosecutors in the central district of california. much has been made over the reporting from "the new york times" piece, quote, a second former irs official who has not been identified told house republicans that same story. that episode was confirmed independently to "the new york times" by a person with knowledge of the situation. on friday, hunter biden's lawyer abbe lowell pushed back in a letter to jason smith, the goop chair of the house ways and means committee, who released the whistleblower transcripts, and called them disgruntled agents with a bias and an axe to grind, and accused the republican lawmakers of releasing the transcripts as,

quote, an obvious employ to feed the misinformation campaign to harm our client, hunter biden,s and a vehicle to attack his father. so what actually happened here? joining me to discuss is glen thrush, washington correspondent for "the new york times," where he covers the department of justice. thank you for being here. it's your "new york times" reporting that i referenced a moment ago. can all of these competing accounts somehow be squared? >> who knows? but i think one of the things that is becoming increasingly clear is merrick garland did not do a very good job of explaining the process to us when he addressed us on friday. this is a much more nuanced process than weiss having completely unlimited authority to move unilaterally. the process would entail, say he goes to d.c. and california and says to them, let's partner on prosecutions involving violations of the tax code and what we're really talking about here, according to the material

that's out there, is the 2014 and 2015 tax years seem to be the ones they were targeting. they say, nah, we don't like it, or for whatever reasons that they choose to decline to partner. he can then go appeal, essentially, to merrick garland and say i want to invoke a section of the law called the special -- not special counsel, special attorney whereby you overrule these guys and give full authority. weiss says he never ask that. garland says he never did that. part of this is how incomplete an explanation garland provided us when we asked him that question. >> in my hand i have my own marked-up version of the print edition of "the new york times" which contains infamous paragraph number 21. quote, that episode was confirmed independently to "the new york times" by a person with knowledge of the situation. what exactly did you confirm? >> we confirmed -- i am not

going to go much beyond what we wrote. but i will tell you that the general sense that we have is that he approached the prosecutor in southern california with a request to partner and was denied. that is the alpha to omega of what we know and what we have reported thus far. we are continuing to -- >> okay. that seems to support what -- it seems to support what shapley has said, which is that at this meeting on october 7, 2022, weiss comes in and says, look, i am not the decisionmaker here. >> it doesn't support that at all. it supports this one fairly narrow aspect of the story. look, the main thing with shapley, what we are seeing, and, obviously, there is new information that's been presented in this testimony that has changed the narrative of the story, right? we are now talking about the d.c. and california charging decisions.

we hadn't been talking about that before. let's just affirm that he has placed that into the record. but a lot of these other characterizations have not been challenged. we are not seeing him cross-examined by minority counsel on his testimony and he has yet to say that he will appear under oath before the committee as merrick garland has. so the suggestions, the question here is, there are two sets of questions here, right? what's the fact set which is what we are attempting to determine, and what are the suggestions that shapley is making and what are the gaps between those two accounts? >> the person who could clear this up more than anyone else, it seems to me, is attorney weiss. do you agree with that, and secondly, do you expect he will soon speak? >> i do. i think -- weiss, from our reporting, weiss is particularly frustrated with shapley's characterization of himself as a whistleblower.

he doesn't think there has been any retaliation against shapley and what we're sort of hearing from scuttlebutt inside the department is that weiss is frustrated by the version of accounts that are going out there. now, that said, there was one line in the announcement of the hunter biden plea deal that sort of freezes everything. he said that this is, quote, unquote, an ongoing investigation, end quote, which took a lot of people by surprise. it means that he, weiss, cannot be dragged before any congressional committee and forced to answer those questions under oath while this is going on. >> i know i'm dreaming, but i i want to see shapley, weiss and garland, you know, all like this and clearing this up once and for all. thank you so much. we will continue to read your reporting on this. >> great talking to you. more social media reaction. i think this comes from the live website chat that we just initiated which had so much traffic that it crashed. hopefully, it's coming back. big fan, but where were you in the beginning of the hunter story? you discounted it.

but now that other media has acknowledged, you're on the program. no, kelly, that's not fair at all. and those who listen to me in my day job on serious xm know that from the get-go, i talked about it extensively. i didn't believe the way the story was squelched should have been the case. i thought it warranted then a full airing and conversation. so there you go. now you can say, oh, he loves trump! but i am also the guy who said at its core it's an addiction story. don't think that it's a corruption story. hunter's got issues. i don't see the evidence that joe does. but it's an addiction story. i would love to talk more about it. believe me. listen to me on radio. i get three hours a day. answer the poll question at smerconish.com which is asking, which is having the greatest impact on american lives? president biden, the congress, or the supreme court? still to come, a judge in arkansas has ruled unconstitutional a state law

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what's the future of anti-trans legislation in america? friday a federal lawsuit was filed in georgia to stop a law that was supposed to go into effect today. a ban on sex reassignment surgeries and hormone replacement therapies for minors. it's one of 20 state legislatures that passed some kind of restriction on medical care for transgender people. this week in north carolina the legislature sent the governor a bill that bans doctors in the state from providing gender-affirming care to minors even if there is parental

consent. in louisiana lawmakers advanced legislation that would block hormone treatments, puberty blockers and surgeries for young people. before such anti-trans medical restrictions get tested in everyday life, they are running into legal roadblocks. this week federal judges in kentucky and tennessee temporarily blocked similar laws in those states and judges have also temporarily blocked alabama and indiana's versions. foremost is arkansas where a federal judge after an eight-day trial struck down the state's save adolescents from experimentation, or safe act, banning gender transition care for minors. the judge said it was unconstitutional. it was the first ruling to block such a ban for an entire state. in his decision, james moody jr. said the law discriminated against transgender people and viola violated the constitutional laws of doctors.

wrote, quote, rather than protecting children or safeguarding medical ethics the evidence showed that the prohibited medical care improves the mental health and well being of patients and prohibiting it the state undermined the interests it claims to be advancing. he added there is nothing unique about the risks of gender-affirming medical care for adolescents that warrants taking this medical decision out of the hands of adolescent patients, parents and doctors. he also dismissed most of the state's expert witnesses as unqualified. saying their opinions were, quote, grounded in ideology rather than science. joining me is dr. dan karasic who was a plaintiffs' expert witness in the arkansas case as well as florida. a professor emeritus of psychiatry of the university of california san francisco. he has been providing care for trans people for more than 30 years. doctor, i read the opinion. the judge made a number of fact findings largely based on your testimony. i want to run through four of them quickly. number one on the screen, gender identity is not something that

an individual can control or voluntarily change or, doctor, as i would say, you can't pray it away, correct? >> yes. gender identity is a deeply felt sense of being male, female or another gender. it's not something where someone can just decide one day that they are not going to be transgender. >> number two. the lack of alignment between one's gender identity and their sex assigned at birth, gender incongruence, can cause significant distress. the medical term is gender dysphoria. the point i take away is it's a recognized medical condition, the sort of thing that you find in the dsm. true? >> yes. gender dysphoria is a diagnosis in the dsm-v. >> number three. gender dysphoria is a serious condition that if left untreated can result in other psychological conditions,

including depression, anxiety, self-harm, suicidality and impairment in functioning. my takeaway, doing nothing is not an option. you would say what? >> yeah, that's my experience as well. you know, i have been working with trans youth for decades now, and i have seen the tremendous benefit that youth get from gender-affirming care for those who need it, and those who are -- who need it but can't access it could have great distress as a result. >> the fourth finding of fact that i pulled out of the opinion. based on your testimony, it is widely recognized in the medical and mental health fields for many people with gender dysphoria, the clinically significant stress caused by the condition can be relieved by living in gender transition, meaning relief comes when you live your identity. is that fair? >> yeah, i think that's fair as

well. for those people who have gender dysphoria and are having distress and impairment as a result, for many of those people transitioning is necessary to provide relief from that distress. >> a concern that i think some parents have, and some of the proponents of the bills that i just described, is that social influence is going to be outcome determinative. so to you as a practitioner, how do you weed out social influence, peer pressure? this is just a fad type of thing. >>iagnosis of gender dysphoria which includes six months of clinically significant distress or social or occupational impairment. so it's not just that someone

learns that there are transgender or non-binary people in society and is, you know, contemplating that as an identity. it's that they are having distress about the difference between their gender identity and their sex assigned at birth. that's going on for months or years and is really impairing their lives. >> how often in your practice, i'm limited on time, so a short answer would be appreciated. how often in your practice for decades, thousands of trans patients, have you encountered regret? >> regret is r i have -- when i encountered it, people have sometimes had regret about losing their job, losing their family, other aspects of societal discrimination they weren't prepared for.

but i don't see regret of people making a binary transition and then, you know, regret doing so. >> thank you, doctor. thanks for allowing me to quickly run through as much of the fax watt predicate as i could get to. >> thank you. checking in on your social media comments. what do we have? you reported on the mental health crisis on american youth. yes, i have. i heard a psychologist say coming out trans youth often suffer depression. is it possible when an authority figure suggests that it is due to gender dysphoria, youth are suddenly trans. i'm not an expert and i don't think i understand your question. i am going to say read the arkansas opinion. an eight-day trial. all this back and forth. it's hard to separate fact and fiction. eight-day trial. federal judge. both sides made factual findings. what was most stunning to me, having invested the time to read

it, the family evidence. the parents and the kids who testified, typical fact pattern. it's been going on for years. young man, young woman realizes when they are, you know, in third grade, hey, something's not right. five years later they write a letter because they are afraid of having the conversation. they write a letter to their parent and say, like, here is the deal. and the experts all cited in the case say it's not something you get talked into. it's not like your kid goes to school tomorrow and come home and will have a new message because it's like the still to come, more of the best and worst social media comments. we'll give the final result of the poll question from smerconish.com which is having -- come on, you know the answer to this -- which is having the greatest impact on american lives. is it president biden? is it the congress, kevin mccarthy and chuck schumer, or is it the supreme court?

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so there's the answer to this week's poll question at smerconish.com. which is having the greatest impact on american lives. 32,000-plus voted, and 78% have the correct answer. i knew that was the way it was going to go, but i wanted to do it nonetheless to drive home the point. like every four years i find myself here on cnn or sirius x.m. saying when you vote, think about the consequence of presidents picking the entire federal judiciary, not just the supreme court when there's a vacancy, but much more law gets made at the appellate level. so maybe next year will be the year people will keep it in mind. quickly, we're about to run out of time.

show one social media reaction. i think you are charging for it. i think if you are charging for it, it is not a free speech issue. right, says bob in reference to -- look, it's very hard to regulate these matters. what is speech? if i'm a magician entertaining at a party, am i delivering speech like a florist or a baker? to be continued. have a happy 4th. d road-test ev. and the results are in. subaru is the twenty twenty-three best mainstream automotive brand, according to consumer reports. and subaru has seven consumer reports recommended models. solterra, forester, outback, crosstrek, ascent, impreza, and legacy. it's easy to love a brand you can trust. it's easy to love a subaru. if you think you have dupuytren's contracture, there's a simple test you can take—from anywhere. try to lay your hand flat against a surface. if you can't, you may have dupuytren's contracture.

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you are in the "cnn newsroom." i'm paula reid in washington. jim ac