JWSP

Alex Midway and Eric Halsey
  • 5.0 (5)
  • Politics
  • Updated Weekly

John Wayne's Surge Protector podcast is two guys discussing the world around us on a twice weekly basis. We try to look at things that we think are huge deals and sometimes those items are also flying under the radar for a lot of other media channels. Having known each other for many years some of the jokes you hear may not come off as jokes. Keep listening and you will get in the loop soon enough as well. We have a link to leave any feedback in most of the episodes so don't hesitate to reach out. 

  1. Read the 14th Again

    3d ago

    Read the 14th Again

    This week's "Who Said It" comes from someone who apparently didn't get the memo that the Supreme Court is supposed to be the final word — and their response to losing a 6-3 decision is going to tell you a lot about where this episode is headed. Tesla's getting a boost from Wall Street optimism that seems blissfully unaware of what's happening in New Jersey, and SpaceX keeps quietly sliding in ways the hype hasn't caught up with yet. We also have a theory about why Trump suddenly wants Ukraine making its own Patriot missiles — and it has a lot more to do with protecting a defense contractor's bottom line than it does with helping Ukraine win a war. Ukraine had one of its most productive stretches of the entire conflict — we're talking a number of Russian ships in the Black and Azov seas that's going to make you do a double take, plus a drone strike that reached somewhere so far inside Russia that the distance alone changes the conversation entirely. Russia is now rationing fuel in over half the country and the guy in charge is calling it temporary. Sure. The birthright citizenship fight got a new chapter this week — a fresh-faced congressman is ready to impress the boss, Brett Kavanaugh inadvertently handed them a roadmap, and the odds of the Supreme Court granting a rehearing haven't been this low since roughly 1965. We run the numbers and let you decide what that means. Trump is removing Syria from the state sponsor of terrorism list — and once we walk you through the current Syrian president's resume, the move becomes one of the more interesting judgment calls of the administration. We also chart what's happened to America's terrorism list over the last decade and the pattern is something else. The NATO summit went fine, which by current standards qualifies as a triumph. Grift Force One made its debut on the way out and then quietly didn't make the return trip. Microsoft laid off thousands the same week they got approved for thousands of H-1B visas. And a data center in Wyoming contaminated the local water supply in a way that makes the Terminator 2 anniversary feel a little too on the nose. Got feedback? We want to hear it.

    49 min
  2. I'll Say It Was Rigged

    6d ago

    I'll Say It Was Rigged

    This week's "Who Said It" comes straight from the world of competitive sports — and the person who said it somehow manages to make winning sound just as unhinged as losing. Tesla and SpaceX are moving in very different directions this week, and the Wall Street reasoning behind one of those moves involves a comparison that tells you everything about how disconnected the analysis has gotten. We have thoughts, and they involve Robert Downey Jr. Putin made a very dramatic trip to the "front lines" this week — and once you hear the production details involved, you'll understand why we put that in quotes. Trump also made some very confident promises about ending the war during a lengthy phone call with Russia, which lands a little differently when you remember what he said the timeline would be. Ukraine meanwhile is sending something new over the border that starts with a balloon and ends with a missile, and over a thousand of them are already in the air before it's even been officially named. The Mitch McConnell situation has gone from "resting comfortably" to something considerably murkier — nobody has seen or heard from him directly in weeks, his wife left the country, and the chain of people vouching for his health is raising more eyebrows than it's lowering. We walk through the Kentucky succession laws and let you connect the dots. The Fourth of July in DC had some uninvited guests who went to great lengths to claim they weren't who they obviously were — and the rebuttal from certain Fox News personalities raises questions about whether they've ever actually met an antifa member. The reflecting pool has a new contractor. The White House is getting a helicopter pad. And we close with a running tally of everything being built, renamed, paved over, or gold-plated while a bipartisan housing bill sits in the trash — and we're the villains in our own story. Got feedback? We want to hear it.

    42 min
  3. Champagne's Already On Ice

    Jul 1

    Champagne's Already On Ice

    This week's "Who Said It" involves some unemployment math that is either very creative or very confused — we'll let you decide which. Tesla's making moves for reasons that sound better than they actually are, SpaceX keeps climbing in ways that have nothing to do with rockets, and the White House just launched a new financial product for kids that raises some very interesting questions about who actually gets to pick the winners. Ukraine had arguably its most productive week of the war — multiple high value targets, some very satisfying footage, and a development near a very famous bridge that has us reaching for the good glasses. Russia meanwhile is having serious supply problems that are showing up at the pump in ways that would make even the most patient driver lose their mind. Steven Seagal is also moving, if you're in the market. Back home, Trump vetoed a bill so bipartisan the numbers will make your head spin — and once you hear what was actually in it, the veto becomes one of the harder things to explain to his own base. There's a new piece of décor on the White House that's giving us very specific historical flashbacks. Ken Paxton was caught on camera doing something that requires some context about his personal life. And the Freedom 250 State Fair happened — sort of. The full story involves generators, a sunny day cancellation, a very telling reflection in a pair of mirrored sunglasses, and a MAGA influencer who is going to have a very bad few months. Oh, and Mitch McConnell might be dead. Happy Tuesday. Got feedback? We want to hear it.

    54 min
  4. F John Fetterman Forever

    Jun 24

    F John Fetterman Forever

    This week's "Who Said It" comes courtesy of some very enthusiastic Australians at a very public event — and once you hear it, you'll understand why we led with it. Tesla briefly popped on merger rumors before a federal probe into a fatal FSD crash in Texas brought it right back down. Turns out murder is still bad for stock prices, even in the golden age. SpaceX meanwhile continues its post-IPO slide and the numbers are starting to tell a story about the gap between hype and gravity. Ukraine had a complicated week — Zelensky made a baffling unit naming decision that cost him a major diplomatic award from one of Ukraine's most loyal allies, and we genuinely cannot figure out the logic. ChatGPT was right there, man. On the brighter side, Ukraine is systematically dismantling Russia's oil infrastructure across Crimea and the Krasnodar region — gas sales in Crimea are currently suspended — and a Russian war blogger named Fighterbomber accidentally became Ukraine's most valuable drone spotter. The Michael Scott meme that followed is chef's kiss. Washington DC is about to get a new mayor and Trump is already threatening to federalize the city if she wins — which tells you everything about how that race is going. Her potential victory connects to a growing political movement that's starting to look like the new currency of progressive endorsements. The reflecting pool saga reaches a new low — vandals, apparently. Definitely vandals. Nothing to do with driving golf carts on fresh paint or hiring a contractor who looked like he was cast for a mob film. The Senate passed a war powers resolution on Iran that was bipartisan, historic, and ultimately completely irrelevant — but we'll tell you exactly which lone Democrat crossed the aisle in the wrong direction and why that matters. And we close with the most morally conflicting story of the year: a US official pushing to annex Greenland just made the strongest argument we've ever heard — and it involves all-you-can-eat shrimp at Red Lobster. We're not proud of our reaction. In case you wanted to see the Michael Scott meme the Ukrainians put up here's the link below  https://xcancel.com/1usc_army/status/2068633721301856485 Got feedback? We want to hear it.

    39 min
  5. Piñata Economics

    Jun 19

    Piñata Economics

    This week's "Who Said It" is three words — and once you find out who said them and in what context, it reframes pretty much everything that follows. SpaceX's IPO numbers are in and they are genuinely staggering — we're talking more money raised than Saudi Aramco, Alibaba, and Facebook combined, for a company that posted losses in Q1. We break down what that actually means, who's really benefiting, and why Elon holding 46% of the shares tells you everything about who this IPO was actually for. We also take a moment to address RFK's take on autism — and the contrast with exhibit A sitting in the Oval Office is one for the ages. Ukraine wasted no time responding to the Kyiv monastery attack — Moscow just got hit with its largest drone strike of the entire war, and a refinery supplying nearly half the capital's fuel took a direct hit. Twice. There's also a new maritime drone that just debuted and the specs on this thing are going to make your jaw drop. We also take a moment to remember who's buried at that monastery — and why Russia bombing it is almost cosmically ironic. The reflecting pool is still green, Fox News has found a way to spin it, and the paint is already peeling — all within weeks of a $14 million renovation. Your co-host has a new economic theory called Piñata Economics and we promise it's the most logical thing you'll hear all episode. The Iran MOU got signed — digitally — and the response from Trump's own party ranges from deeply concerned to absolutely baffled. A classified CIA assessment adds some context that makes the whole thing even harder to celebrate. Ted Cruz has feelings. Lindsey Graham has a very convenient memory. And the week closes with a court order, a partition wall, and a president who really didn't want anyone to see his name come off a building. One of the many Moscow oil refinery memes out there Instagram Got feedback? We want to hear it.

    43 min
  6. The Breadsticks Ain't Come Out Yet

    Jun 17

    The Breadsticks Ain't Come Out Yet

    This week's "Who Said It" is a prediction about Iran and negotiating skills — and depending on how you feel about recent headlines, it's either painfully accurate or about to be proven wrong in real time. Tesla's getting a boost from an unlikely source — retail investors piling in while insiders are locked out from selling — and meanwhile SpaceX just made someone the world's first trillionaire on a $2.6 trillion valuation for a company that's bleeding billions. We break down the lockup structure, the timing, and exactly when you should expect the exits to start. It was a busy weekend in Ukraine — Russia launched a massive wave of missiles including some genuinely terrifying hypersonic hardware, and a UNESCO World Heritage site took a hit in the process. There's also some real diplomatic movement worth celebrating, plus a ceasefire announcement that comes with so many asterisks we're not sure where to start — a mountain, a memorandum, and a number Trump used to describe nuclear materials that you're not going to believe. The reflecting pool saga continues and somehow gets dumber. Brooke Rollins wants credit for a screw worm program that quietly got way more expensive after DOGE supposedly "streamlined" it. And then there's the weekend's main event — a birthday extravaganza on the White House lawn that delivered some fight outcomes nobody saw coming, a culture war moment involving a sitting First Lady's husband that we're still shaking our heads at, a cursive-related conspiracy theory, a hacking claim that convinced absolutely nobody, and an infomercial moment so transparent it might be the funniest unintentional reveal of the year. Got feedback? We want to hear it.

    52 min
  7. 1,569 Days, One Screwworm, and a Referee Stranded in Miami

    Jun 12

    1,569 Days, One Screwworm, and a Referee Stranded in Miami

    The episode kicks off with Trump making some eyebrow-raising comments about inflation, and the hosts break down what's actually going on with the numbers. From there, Tesla gets some time in the spotlight — the stock had an interesting day, and there's some new data out of Europe about their self-driving technology that's worth talking about. The Ukraine war hits a sobering milestone this episode. The hosts put the length of the conflict into perspective in a way that might genuinely stop you in your tracks — and then there's a significant development deep inside Russian territory that shows just how far Ukraine's reach has grown. Back stateside, the political circus delivers as always. A high-profile congresswoman's career comes to an unceremonious end in a primary, and there's some leaked audio from a Republican leader that has people asking questions about promises made to voters. One congressman's attempt to dodge a reporter on the street goes about as well as you'd expect. The World Cup is here, hosted on North American soil — but not everything about the lead-up has been celebratory. There are some real head-scratching decisions around who's been allowed in and who hasn't, including one story about a referee with an incredible backstory that will leave you frustrated. The hosts also get into a creepy-crawly public health story making a comeback in the American South, a tone-deaf celebrity moment involving a real estate ad, and close things out on a genuinely feel-good sports moment that New York hasn't seen in a long, long time. Got feedback? We want to hear it.

    51 min
  8. Too Many Jobs, Somehow Bad

    Jun 10

    Too Many Jobs, Somehow Bad

    This week's "Who Said It" is about taxing the rich — coming from someone whose track record on that subject is going to make you spit out your coffee. We also have a bonus "Who Said It 2: Electric Boogaloo" buried in the back half that hits just as hard. Tesla is sliding again and the reason this time is genuinely wild — the job market was doing too well and that's bad for tech stocks, which tells you everything you need to know about whose economy this actually is. We also dig deeper into the SpaceX IPO and there's a new wrinkle involving the S&P 500, a 12-day window, and your 401k that deserves a lot more attention than it's getting. The EU just dropped what could be the biggest sanctions package on Russia yet — $1.5 trillion worth — targeting the military industrial complex, propagandists, and human rights violators. Meanwhile the American response involves lifting sanctions on Russian oil and sending a hockey team to Moscow. We look into who's behind that hockey trip and the American Chamber of Commerce's Russia chapter president has a wishlist that will have your jaw on the floor — including a very sympathetic take on Russian civilians that somehow involves Sephora. Ukraine's four-year-old missile startup just sent a cruise missile skimming along the Finnish coast headed straight for Russian ships in the Baltic. Germany's Skynex anti-drone system just entered service with Ukraine and the reviews are glowing. War portfolio update included. Dr. Oz held a White House presser on obesity and dementia while someone very important appeared to be taking a power nap in the chair behind him. Trump then showed up to the Knicks NBA Finals game, caused a traffic apocalypse, got booed during the anthem, and left at halftime — while the new NYC mayor paid a grand out of pocket for standing room and stayed the whole time. The contrast writes itself. Thomas Massie is back and this time he's calling for an investigation into Israel's 1967 attack on the USS Liberty — we walk through what actually happened that day, how clear the conditions were, and why the survivors have never bought the official explanation. And the LA mayoral primary caused a meltdown among people who apparently don't understand how vote reporting works. Got feedback? We want to hear it.

    47 min
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
5 Ratings

About

John Wayne's Surge Protector podcast is two guys discussing the world around us on a twice weekly basis. We try to look at things that we think are huge deals and sometimes those items are also flying under the radar for a lot of other media channels. Having known each other for many years some of the jokes you hear may not come off as jokes. Keep listening and you will get in the loop soon enough as well. We have a link to leave any feedback in most of the episodes so don't hesitate to reach out. 

Information

  • Creator
    Alex Midway and Eric Halsey
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    123
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 John Wayne's Surge Protector
  • Show Website
    JWSP