💬 How an '80s commercial for Perdue chicken explains what's happening with the modern Democrat party

Well, you’re now officially receiving an email from a 50-year-old man. I was a bicentennial baby, born in ‘76 and now celebrating my 50th in the year of America’s semiquincentennial. Thank you to everyone in the comments and on Locals who sent birthday wishes this week. I have to tell you, despite my banged-up collarbone, I feel pretty good. Not just about my life, but about the country.

Over the last couple of days, the final days of my 40s, the phrase “Life finds a way” — yeah, the quote from Jurassic Park — for some reason kept repeating in my head. And I feel like the best is yet to come for you, for me — for this country, despite all of the craziness that I talk about on the show each day. Going into my 50s, I have a good outlook for America.

Another thing I thought about this week is that when a couple reaches 50 years of marriage, it’s called a golden anniversary … so, does that make this my golden birthday? I just asked Grok and it turns out that, no, this is not my golden birthday, but it is considered a “golden jubilee” and means that I am now beginning the “golden age” of life.

So, I’m 50 years old now and lately I have not been able to get a vintage TV commercial out of my head because I think it really explains what’s happening with this socialist takeover of the Democrat party that’s happening and was abundantly apparent in New York this week where a trio of Hamas-loving extremists backed by Zohran Mamdani won U.S. House primary races. I kid you not, I remember watching this commercial probably 36 years ago, when I was 14. It was a staple of late ‘80s TV.

You may remember that Frank Perdue used to do all these commercials for Perdue Chicken. I guess he started doing them in the ‘70s, but the one that is a perfect allegory for New York Democrats in 2026 is a commercial he did in the late ‘80s. Those of you of a certain age will remember this one.

Frank used to talk in the commercials about how his chickens aren’t given hormones and steroids, and he loves these chickens and treats them so well. And I specifically remember this one where he was dressed up like a drill sergeant and goes into the chicken coup talking about how he does more inspections than the FDA requires and the chickens are raised cage-free.

Now, as you watch this classic TV commercial, I want you to think of him as Zorhan Mamdani and all the chickens as the people of New York. The chickens are cage-free! And Gladys got free corn and soybeans! The chickens were so comfortable. What the commercial never told people — and I could never get past this as a kid — was what fate the chickens ultimately met. I had the team add a little coda onto the end of this commercial to complete the story. It’s a nice little trip down memory lane, but also amazing how perfectly it applies to what’s happening right now.

Gladys literally got hung upside down, had her head chopped off, her beak burned off, or God knows what else they do to these chickens. And that, folks, is what is happening in real time in New York City right now. Mamdani looks good in the commercials, the lo-fi music distracts from who he really is. People will give up all their freedoms — and then one day when it’s too late will say, “Oh, wait a minute.”

Before we get to the Top Trump Peeps poll and tweet of the week, the other seriously important thing this week is Trump throwing down with Senate Republicans about the SAVE Act. I’m sure the bipartisan housing bill is all well and good, but it won’t matter if we don’t secure elections in this country. And Trump knows it. It was good to see him play a little hardball with these senators who can’t find it within themselves to vote for something that 80% of the country agrees with.

It’s only the radical leftists that don’t want voter ID requirements. Democrats obviously want to flood the country, want to flood the voter roles, they want fraud and all of the shenanigans that come with it. Look what happened in L.A. with the mayoral primary if you need a recent example.

I thought Tommy Tuberville, the U.S. senator from Alabama, put it perfectly on Fox News, saying that if we don’t get the SAVE Act passed now “it'll be the last time we'll have a Republican president or Republican Senate or a House. That's how fast this country is going down to communism.” 🎯

Like Frank Perdue taking his chickens to the slaughterhouse.

Rubio’s winning streak in Top Trump Peeps poll continues

The latest of edition of my Trump power rankings has become a two-man race, with Marco Rubio holding on as the top-performing member of the the Trump team, according to the readers of this newsletter. Vance, who had a solid week last week on The View and other shows and was in Geneva for the Iran peace talks over the weekend jumped. My theory last week was that maybe Rubio’s significant visibility in recent months has been carrying him, and I think there’s something to that theory given how Vance’s performance in the poll improved during a week in which he was highly visible. But that’s not all there is to the Rubio phenomenon. Reader aimeslee, whom I’ve featured before, has also witnessed many presidential administrations and had an interesting take.

This week, let’s take a look at the other side. In the past, I’ve polled you guys on who the worst Democrat is. (Are there any good ones? No, seriously.) This week, I want to know who you think is the most powerful Democrat right now in terms of political capital and influence. Is it Mamdani? Or someone else? Get your vote in ⬇️

• 🎉 If you opened this email as soon as it hit your inbox, you’ve got about six hours to take advantage of the 50th birthday special we’ve been running on Copal this week. 50% off a bottle for my birthday. The accountant and business manager advised against it, but I did it anyway. Call it my birthday gift to you. And if you get that order in by midnight, it should arrive by July 4th. It’s a great way to celebrate America’s 250th.

• Always love the questions people send in for our Locals Community Q&A each week. I had time to answer only a few on Thursday, but one was interesting from CraftyKat, who asked, “What are some tips and tricks you learned to overcome when speaking to people you respect or in authority.” As I said on the show, the only interview I’ve really ever been nervous doing was with the famed economist Thomas Sowell. That interview happened about eight years ago and I knew he was such a living legend and gives very few interviews, that I was actually very nervous. So much so that, if you go back and watch it, you’ll hear my voice trembling a little bit in the first five minutes or so.

• I’m heading up to D.C. on Sunday to watch Bill Maher receive the Mark Twain Prize at the Kennedy-Trump Center, so Monday’s show is a pre-tape, but I’m sure I’ll have some good details from that to share.

• You did it! You’ve reached the end of the newsletter. That’s all for now, but I’ll be back in your inbox on Sunday with a new edition of The Return to Normalcy. Don’t forget to check out our sponsor today, Monetary Gold. Rubin Recap readers are eligible to receive a free gold & silver guide.

• Was this email forwarded to you? Get on the list and sign up here.

Until Sunday … — Dave