pretty inexpensive, it's around 20 the times next year's earnings with about a 3.5% dividend yield. and i think that americans' appetite for snack foods and some of the beverages they make is not going away. jack: do not bet against fritos. all right, jack, schroedering ear's kink -- skunk, gotta love that. that's all for us. we'll see you next week on "barron's roundtable." ♪

to kill the future of our children and grandchildren. >> people want to see if the incoming securities and exchange commission chairman, paul atkins, will get behind an idea to consolidate agencies. a lot of conversation about the potentially cftc. commodities traders futures commission merging into the securities and exchange commission, or perhaps

the consumer protection agency merging into another. would you support those ideas? >> oh, absolutely i do. and when you talk about these agencies that have built up their own fiefdom, and you look at how departments actually function, i like the idea we're seeing around the department of energy, a national energy council, and then the department of interior, with governor burgum taking that as secretary and beginning to look at our natural resources, asking those important questions. okay, if we're drilling on federal lands, what happens if we do something similar to a sovereign wealth fund? what happens if we use that to pay down our nation's debt? and, maria, i fully believe that americans have reached a tipping point when it comes to an ineffective government that does not function in a timely manner to

deliver the services that are necessary for the american taxpayers. >> senator, in terms of the agenda, are you in line with some of your colleagues in the senate who want to do two reconciliation packages, the first one being the border? $100 billion is what's being talked about for a border bill. and then a second reconciliation package later on in the year. that will include the extension of tax cuts. >> i think this is going to be a good way to approach it. use the first reconciliation to deal with the border, with energy, with the military, and go ahead and get those wins posted for president trump and get some of these initiatives into law through budget report language. then this summer, do the second package, which will be with permanence for our tcja the 2017 tax cuts. and we can do that by standing on current

policy. that's a good thing. and then what we can do is come back and do another tranche for no tax on tips, looking at social security, removing those taxes. look at overtime pay. this is going to be a very exciting time for reshaping u.s. tax policy. yeah. >> and president trump has a whole new team coming in. are you expecting to vote for all of president trump's nominees for his cabinet positions? >> maria, i do expect to vote for all of them, and i am. i've had such positive meetings for them. these are individuals who are looking to be a partner with the american people and with american industry. and i fully believe that the policies and the people that president donald trump is bringing into his administration will help

move us to that productivity that the american people are wanting to see. they are tired of being broke. >> well, that's right, and we'll be looking forward to those hearings in early january. i know you're also working with elon musk on another major project, pushing for the passage of the bipartisan kids online safety act, requiring online platforms like x to take steps to prevent harm to children when it comes to cyberbullying, sexual exploitation and drug addiction. your bill has stalled in the house after passing in the senate. speaker johnson says he's got doubts. watch this. >> there's still some concern about the free speech components of that, and whether it might lead to further censorship by the government o, of valid, you know, conservative voices, for example. so we're working through all that. >> your reaction, senator? >> yes. speaker johnson's a good man. i know he wants to protect children. i am hopeful that his staff will put the new free speech language in front of him. and the changes that we

have made to duty of care. this is something that came out of the senate, 91 to 3. maria, we have done nothing to protect children in the virtual space since 1998, and a lot has changed. and there are laws in the physical space that protect children from exposure to alcohol, tobacco, pornography, sexual exploitation. and people can be prosecuted for those actions in the physical space. in the virtual space, there is nothing. it is the wild west. it is not compromising free speech. >> no. >> and children. >> and you've been working on this for a long time. so thank you so much for your efforts there. i want to go back to the border for a moment, because we just talked about the $100 billion that will be needed for that border bill through reconciliation. but the biden administration is now trying to sell off taxpayer funded, unused border wall material at

scrap metal prices. with just weeks until the trump administration comes in. you know, i mean, president trump has been very clear he's going to build that border wall. there's all that material sitting at the border, which you've seen. i've seen up close in person. and yet the biden administration is selling the material knowing that trump needs it. >> my team and i are working to see what we can do to block this auction. it is unseemly and disgusting that you have people that are so pro-open border that they are pushing the biden administration to do a fire sale on all of this. bear in mind, this is not their prerogative to do that. this material was all bought with taxpayer money. >> right, right. >> the taxpayers want this built, and for them to be so arrogant and to think they can go sell this off and prohibit

construction from beginning immediately on that wall. it is astounding. there is these people, these democrats have learned nothing. they learned nothing in the election. they still think the american people are stupid. they think the american people are wrong when it comes to understanding the economy. joe biden continues to say he has built the world's greatest economy. yeah, we all know that's not true. >> it's quite extraordinary. senator, we'll be watching these next 40 days until january 20th. it's good to see you. thanks so much for being here this weekend. >> good to see you. >> all right. marsha blackburn joining us in tennessee a quick break. and then traders cheering president elect donald trump on the floor of the new york stock exchange. u-s-a, usa. >> usa. >> kenny polcari is here. and what this enthusiasm could mean for markets and your money.

coming up next. >> introducing newared ed treatment available without a prescription. a roxon gel is clinically proven to work within ten minutes, so you and your partner can experience the heights of intimacy. new arachnid treatment gel sleep feel the sheets difference is real pulled back fall in, exhale so chill all night. >> smooth, soft just right on the night. visit tripshock.com and get 25% off. >> when you get approved. with drive time, you get the real deal. it's the drive time. >> real deal maker lets you customize the real down payment and monthly payment of the car you want to buy. >> that's super smart, and the deal you make on your phone is the deal you pay. you make the

deal yourself. >> get the real deal@drivetime.com. >> what if you could whiten your teeth by simply brushing your teeth? now you can with smile actives, the teeth whitening breakthrough that safely gets your teeth white and keeps them white every day just by brushing your teeth. >> i never thought that whitening my teeth could be so easy. i just put the gel on the brush, the toothpaste on it brush and i can see my white teeth. >> simply add smile actives to any toothpaste. and our patented polly clean technology activates into a powerful microfoam that penetrates into the enamel surface. to safely lift and remove stains, you need a simple way to whiten your teeth without strips, without trays, without going to the dentist. >> and it was about time that a product was developed that you would be able to do that with just brushing. >> and now smile actives is even better with new pro whitening gel with 33% greater whitening power clinically shown to whiten teeth faster, up to eight shades, 100% of users saw whiter teeth on food stains, coffee and wine stains,

even on veneers, crowns and dentures. >> i eat the blueberries, i drink the coffee, and i know that smile actives will keep my teeth white every day. >> if you could use something so easy, like smile actives to take yellow teeth to white teeth, why wouldn't you? >> why spend hundreds of dollars for whitening treatments at the dentist? when now you can whiten your teeth with new smile actives pro whitening gel. every time you brush your teeth, prepare your teeth for this holiday season and call or go online now and for a limited time, get pro whitening gel for just 24.95. >> order in the next five minutes and buy one. get one absolutely free. plus, you'll receive our smile actives tartar control toothpaste, also absolutely free as our gift to you. pay only 24.95 and save over 65% when you order today and will even ship smile actives to you. absolutely free. if you are not loving your whiter, brighter smile, then return the bottles within 60 days and will give you your money back. so call or go online now and take advantage

of this special holiday offer. >> welcome back! take a look at where markets ended the week after the nasdaq traded above 20,000 for the first time ever. this week we also got two key inflation reports. consumer prices ticking slightly higher in november, but wholesale prices rose the most since february of last year. this with less than a week away from the final federal reserve meeting of the year coming up this upcoming tuesday and wednesday. joining me now is slatestone wealth chief market strategist kenny polcari. kenny, great to see you. >> thank you for having me. >> so assess where we are. we got those inflation reports out this week. but in a couple days people are expecting another cut in interest rates from the fed in that two day meeting. the final meeting of the year ken, it's amazing to me what the market is expecting. >> and it's like i think it's nearly 100% that they're expecting this 25 basis point rate cut. and i don't see it. i have been, you know, vocally against it. i've been saying we

don't need it. the fed has already cut rates by 75 basis points. we're going into a new year, a new administration. there's a lot going on. cpi and ppi have both started to tick back up. the ppi now two months in a row. the cpi just started to tick back up. and i think it's i don't think they should. but i think that powell has got himself backed into a corner. and if he doesn't cut rates then you know the algos and the traders are going to stamp their feet and create chaos in the last week and a half of the year. and i don't think the i don't think the fed or the administration wants to see that either. so i think they're going to be forced into cutting just to pacify everybody. but then i think you're not going to be any you won't see any cuts in the first quarter of 25. >> i mean, there is a risk you cut too much going into an economy that's growing and gaining growth because of deregulation and energy capacity. tapping into that and all of trump's policies, what happens then? inflation comes back, right? >> well, listen, it's i hate to say it. i hate to keep dating myself, but it's a repeat of what happened in 1970 and 1980.

they prematurely cut rates into into the growing economy. and they reignited inflation. and it got and it was worse the second time around. and paul volcker had to jam rates high and send the country in a two year recession. so i'm not saying that that's where we're going, but you can start to feel that prices are not going down, and you can see it in the cpi and ppi that they're starting to tick back up. and so i that's why i think there's no reason to cut. and you know what's really funny is that powell came out two weeks ago and said we're going to go slow. there's no reason to rush. and the market went from a 70% chance to a 90% chance. >> yeah, it's ridiculous to me. you're right. you're right. meanwhile, they were cheers on wall street thursday, with president elect donald trump ringing the opening bell at the new york stock exchange, traders on the floor were clamoring to shake his hand. the enthusiasm for the incoming administration palpable. you remember those days when you were there on the floor of the exchange? i was there with you. what's your outlook for these markets, and how will they respond to trump when he's in

office? >> i think listen, i think the markets are already telling you how it's going to respond to trump ever since the election. right. coming into and then since. right. the markets are very excited. and now look there's a lot going on. right. the deregulation part is going to be very exciting. the crypto part is going to be exciting. the idea that, you know, we're going to this economy is going to take off again. his comments last week about about, you know, any company that wants to come and spend $1 billion in the united states is going to get, you know, a quickly a quick pass to it, right? all permits, everything they need if they're going to come and they're going to invest here, we're going to bring the u.s. economy back. and i think that's what the market is telling you. it believes it's going to happen. and i actually think there's a couple of polls out there saying that 65% of americans are now kind of buying into this whole economic policy, that they think he's going to be able to take control of it. so i think the market's excited. i'm excited. you're excited. let's see what happens. >> yeah for sure. are there areas you want to tap into now kenny to participate in this rally next year. where is the best place to allocate capital

in your view. >> so where we never got out. so we've always been in right. so we're in a broad range but certainly i and the whole tech space. and i'm going to tell you something that's been really interesting of late is this whole quantum computing idea. right. so the idea how that's also then going to change ai and the way that ai operates and continues to change the world. so that's a new place to kind of look at. i'm just starting to, to dip my toes into that space. but listen, for a well-diversified portfolio, you have to stay broadly diversified. so i'm not going to be chasing some of the names that have really outdone themselves, but i am going to be putting money to work in the new year when i think we're going to get this a little bit of a pullback in january and february, because i don't think it's coming in the next two weeks. so when it happens, well, i'm going to look to add money into the financials, into the industrial space, certainly into this new quantum space that we've been talking about along with tech when it pulls back. i'd love to buy more nvidia, but i want to see a pullback. >> all right. we'll be watching

all of that kenny it's great to see you. thank you so much. >> oh merry christmas. it's always a pleasure. >> merry christmas to you. sending best regards kenny polcari joining us. thank you sir. well other states are looking to california's fast food $20 minimum wage hike now. and we're getting new data and reaction on the actual impact. one california mcdonald's franchise owner has already had to close two restaurants this year. he'll join us next. stay with us. >> maye musk on varney as trump transition continues and elon's new department looks to cut government waste. she's detailing the work ahead monday on varney. >> amelia turn off alarm amelia weather 70 degrees and sunny today. amelia, unlock the door. >> i'm afraid i can't do that. jen. >> why not? >> did you forget something? >> my protein shake. >> the future isn't scary. not investing in it is. >> you're so dramatic. amelia. >> hi, jen, nasdaq 100 innovators one etf.

>> before investing, carefully read and consider fund investment objectives, risks, charges, expenses and more in prospectus at invesco. >> com to go further, you need to be ready for what's down the road. as energy demand continues to rise, we're harnessing breakthrough innovations to increase production in the us gulf of mexico. our latest deepwater development anchor produces previously inaccessible oil and natural gas, allowing us to deliver the energy we all need today so everyone can follow their own road. that's energy in progress. >> is a bitcoin etf the same as owning bitcoin directly? while bitcoin etfs might offer a familiar face, they lack the true ownership and flexibility of directly investing in bitcoin. with itrust capital, you can buy and sell real bitcoin 24 over seven. with the tax advantages of an ira. real bitcoin means no middlemen, no restricted stock market hours. choose the path of direct bitcoin investment with itrust capital because access equal

♪ ♪ with so much great entertainment out there... wouldn't it be easier if you could find what you want, all in one place?

my favorites. get xfinity streamsaver with netflix, apple tv+, and peacock included, for only $15 a month. to my house to donate today. >> welcome back. a troubling trend for california's fast food industry. we were all over this story when california governor gavin newsom signed into law a fast food, $20 minimum wage last september. it went into effect in april, and now we know the impact. new federal data reveals more than 6000 fast food jobs have been

lost in the state over the past year. for comparison, during the same period just one year earlier, california's fast food restaurants actually added more than 17,000 jobs. california mcdonald's franchise owner scott roderick joined us back in april to share his concerns. then. since then, he's had to close two of his restaurants. he's back with us right now. scott, good to see you. thank you so much for being here. we're actually seeing now the numbers and what a $20 minimum wage has meant for the industry. walk us through it. why did you have to close two stores? >> well, good. good. hello, maria. you know, since this new wage targeting fast food franchises took effect last april, my business has certainly experienced the cost pressure the legislation sent out. singled out 15,000 fast food restaurants in the state. so eight months later, here we are. it's no surprise to hear that at least 6000 jobs have been lost in my industry. you know, i personally have not

taken the approach in mitigating the impact to lay off staff members. i have good people that have worked for my family for years, decades, but instead i've had to reduce my investment in labor hours across all departments and day parts. i've slowed to a crawl. new hiring. essentially, i'm relying on a smaller staff size. this is the first summer that i can remember where we simply did not accept short term student summer work. the hours were simply not there. so what i suspect is driving some of the 6000 job loss numbers that you just reported thinking about. my own experience is the is the cumulative result of hours reduction versus outright layoffs? yes, there are companies in california exiting the california market. i've heard stories through my trade association of companies that have laid off employees, but i suspect that most of those 15,000 restaurants impacted have been forced to do what i've done reduce the hours of full time workers, limit the use of overtime, reduce the pace of hiring, and look to cutting costs on every single

line item. >> yeah. so you're saying because you have to pay $20 an hour and you're paying these, these, these people, this is sort of like students and you know, they don't it's not like they have any experience. right. they need a they need a job. and because you've had to pay $20 an hour, you've had to take out expenses elsewhere. and in some cases, that has meant closing stores or letting others go. >> well, operating in california restaurants in california is a real challenge, and even more so in a place, a high cost place like san francisco. and so yes, unfortunately, in the past year i've had to close two restaurants, one just before and one right after the california wage mandate took effect. you know, ultimately closing and focusing on the remainder of my enterprise was the right choice. but, you know, when a business like mine arrives at its lease end, even after 30 years in a neighborhood, a business owner has got to decide if what the landlord is proposing for a new lease makes sense. and i had to study the new term economics

against the backdrop of escalating costs. not just rent, but of course, a wage that skyrocketed skyrocketed 25% overnight on april 1st. >> wow. that's incredible. look, looking nationally scott, this week we saw the small business optimism jump to the highest level since june of 2021. a ceo survey from some of the world's largest and most influential companies showed 84% are optimistic about their company's performance over the next 12 months. so as you look ahead, what is your outlook for business in the coming year? >> well, family owned businesses like myself are looking forward to getting back to creating jobs again, and that only happens when an economy is healthy and growing. and so my hope is that a new class of legislators in washington and in statehouses, even in city halls, get back to removing obstacles to business growth. my business is hopeful for lower utility costs, access to insurance, fighting inflation at the back door. and when it comes to lawmaking and looking forward, i learned the

hard way that if you're not at the political table, you are on the menu. >> total great point. you've got to have a voice at the table, no doubt about it. scott, good to see you and we'll be watching your work. thanks so much. >> thank you maria. >> all right. scott roderick joining us. i've got one important thing you need to know about ahead of next week. that's next. >> chase really knows how to put the heart in your local community. see what i did there? hey, jackie. evan. my guy. you're helping them with savings, right? i wish i had somebody like evan when i started. somebody just got their first debit card. ice cream on you. ooh, tacos. i got you. wait. hold on. don't you owe me money? what? your money is a part of your community, so your bank should be, too. >> like chase patients who have sensitive teeth but also want whiter teeth. they have to make a choice one versus the other. new sensodyne clinical white. it provides two shades whiter teeth as well as providing 24

over seven sensitivity protection. patients are going to love to see sensodyne on the shelf. >> are you overwhelmed with identity management in the context of omnipresent threats to your organization? hi. >> so no one knows what that means. >> what's happening? >> just explain. >> i want to help secure digital identity. keep it simple. >> like what? >> like when delivering a fresh uniform or viewing your results. yeah. it's bad. or making bread soon at the high school reunion. >> oh, i love that color. whoo! that was a lot. >> oh, there's more, like, lots more. >> if you have wet amd you never want to lose sight of the things you love. we get it. some things should stand the test of time. long lasting ilia hd could significantly improve your vision. more people on ilia hd had no fluid in the retina compared to those on ilia at four months. ilia hd is the only wet amd therapy that helped. eight out of ten people go up to four months between

injections after three initial monthly treatments. if you have an eye infection, eye pain, or redness or allergies to ilia hd, don't use eye injections like ilia hd may cause eye infections, separation of the retina, or rare but severe swelling of blood vessels in the eye. an increase in eye pressure has been seen. there is an uncommon risk of heart attack or stroke associated with blood clots. the most common side effects were blurred vision, cataract, corneal injury, and eye floaters. and there's still so much to see if you are on ilia or a similar type of treatment, ask your retina specialist about ilia hd today for the potential for fewer injections. >> i need to get me a new phone. >> i need to trade in a busted up phone. you get you a brand new iphone 16 pro t mobile. it's on them. family save 20% every month. what a deal. >> new and existing customers trade in your busted old phone and we'll give you a new iphone 16 pro with apple intelligence on us this christmas. give the gift that gives back all season long with the outdoor cooking, fun and flavor that's better on a blackstone, join more than 12

million blackstone users who know you can cook anything, anytime, anywhere with an endless variety of your favorite foods. for every breakfast, lunch, and dinner. go to your nearest retailer or blackstone products.com for the best deals of the season and make everything better on a blackstone treasure. that is what you are. >> honey, you're my golden star. >> you know you can make my welcome back. one thing you need to know about ahead of next week. one man's trash is another man's treasure. more americans turning to their unwanted gifts as a way to save money this holiday. a new survey finds 42% plan to regift some of their presents to keep spending down, as nearly half say they are concerned that financial stress will dampen their holiday spirit. a whopping 83% of americans cite inflation and an increased cost of living as key factors for how much they'll pay for

presents under the tree this year. so we give the gift that keeps on giving. we'll be following this on mornings with maria, weekdays 6 to 9 a.m. eastern on fox business. i hope you will join me here weekdays, and i'll see you over on fox news channel on sunday morning, 10 a.m. eastern live for sunday morning futures. i've got exclusive interviews this weekend with house ways and means committee chairman jason smith, house china select committee ranking member raja krishnamoorthi. trump media ceo devin nunes and utah senator mike lee. sunday on fox news. join us for sunday morning futures. that'll do it for us here on fox business. thank you so much for joining us. have a great rest of the weekend and i'll see you again next time. >> barron's roundtable, sponsored by global etfs. >> welcome to barron's roundtable where