How Political Gridlock and Deficit Spending Threaten America's Future: Tom Bilyeu Debates Stephen Bonnell Pt. 1

Tom Bilyeu's Impact Theory

Impact Theory

Education, News, News Commentary, Philosophy, Technology, Society & Culture, Business, Self-improvement

4.7 • 5.1K Ratings

🗓️ 11 November 2025

⏱️ 64 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

What's up, everybody? It's Tom Bilyeu here: If you want my help... STARTING a business: join me here at ZERO TO FOUNDER: https://tombilyeu.com/zero-to-founder?utm_campaign=Podcast%20Offer&utm_source=podca[%E2%80%A6]d%20end%20of%20show&utm_content=podcast%20ad%20end%20of%20show SCALING a business: see if you qualify here.: https://tombilyeu.com/call Get my battle-tested strategies and insights delivered weekly to your inbox: sign up here.: https://tombilyeu.com/ ********************************************************************** If you're serious about leveling up your life, I urge you to check out my new podcast, Tom Bilyeu’s Mindset Playbook —a goldmine of my most impactful episodes on mindset, business, and health. Trust me, your future self will thank you. ********************************************************************** FOLLOW TOM: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tombilyeu/ Tik Tok: https://www.tiktok.com/@tombilyeu?lang=en Twitter: https://twitter.com/tombilyeu YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TomBilyeu On today’s episode of Impact Theory, Tom Bilyeu sits down with streamer and political commentator Stephen Bonnell—better known as Destiny—for a deep dive into the big questions shaping America’s future. The conversation kicks off with the rise of a socialist-leaning mayor in New York City, before widening into a no-holds-barred debate on the health of the U.S. economy, wealth inequality, deficit spending, and the political polarization gripping the nation. Stephen brings his signature sharpness and skepticism as he challenges narratives about the direction of the Democratic Party, the nature of economic growth, and the practical realities of policy-making in an era of gridlock. Tom and Stephen clash on the dangers of populism, the reality behind deficit spending, and the very definition of what’s driving the policies of both the left and the right. From housing crises and immigration to the looming threat of authoritarianism and the legacy of globalism, nothing is off the table in this wide-ranging episode. Whether you’re worried about runaway spending, civil stability, or just want to understand how smart people can see the same world so differently, this is a conversation you don’t want to miss. Tune in as Tom and Stephen try to map out—and argue about—the best path forward for America. FOLLOW STEPHEN BONNELL (DESTINY):YouTube: DestinyTwitter/X: @OmniLiberalKick: Destiny Linkedin: Post your job free at https://linkedin.com/impacttheory HomeServe: Help protect your home systems – and your wallet – with HomeServe against covered repairs. Plans start at just $4.99 a month at https://homeserve.com Bevel Health: 1st month FREE at https://bevel.health/impact with code IMPACT ButcherBox: Your choice of holiday protein — ham or turkey in your first box, or ground beef for life — plus $20 off at https://butcherbox.com/impact Shopify: Sign up for your one-dollar-per-month trial period at https://shopify.com/impact Incogni: Take your personal data back with Incogni! Use code IMPACT at the link below and get 60% off an annual plan: https://incogni.com/impact BlandAI: Call it for free today: https://bland.ai Or for enterprises, you can book a demo directly: https://bland.ai/enterprise Connectteam: 14 day free trial at https://connecteam.cc/46GxoTFd Raycon: Go to https://buyraycon.com/impact to get up to 30% off sitewide. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	Stephen Bonnell, welcome back.
0:01.5	Tom Bill U. Thanks for coming by.
0:03.0	Dude, I appreciate it.
0:04.0	And I appreciate you letting us use your studio.
0:06.5	You are always extremely generous, which makes us so much easier for us.
0:10.0	So really, really grateful for your time and for just the hospitality.
0:14.0	Okay, we just had a socialist elected to be mayor of the biggest financial city in the world. What do you take away from that?
0:26.2	Do you think that that's going to make New York City better? Is this a good direction for the Democrat Party or else?
0:33.7	I feel like everybody's over-indexing on this election a lot based on what they want to see. The far-left people online are saying this is the proof of concept that the whole Democratic Party is going to go to the socialist direction. I think conservatives are saying this is evidence of Islamic jihadist winning elections. Or see, that's the really ridiculous. Rather, people saying like, oh, the whole Democratic Party is becoming socialist. But, but i mean it's new york city it's a very blue place um he won his primary when the primary was won
0:59.2	he was basically gonna win um Cuomo probably not the best person to try to run against him for that
1:05.2	it's not his time anymore um i think mom done he ran a good campaign and stuff is funny if you watch
1:10.0	the videos i almost feel like i'm watching cutouts from like the daily show from like the 2000s.
1:14.0	He's a funny dude.
1:14.6	He's got on camera, which is one of the most important things, unfortunately, in today's media environment. So, yeah, I think it'll probably more or less be business as usual in New York City for better or for worse. Do you think it'll be business as usual because he'll be stymied and he won't be able to get the policies through?
1:27.8	Do you think it'll be business as usual because he'll be stymied and he won't be able to get the policies through? Do you think it'll be business as usual because he calms down some of the more what I would call socialist, like just blatantly socialist rhetoric? What's going to make it be business as usual? Generally, the left doesn't overstep their legal authority. Like I would say, Maga or the right does. So I think that for a lot
1:44.4	of stuff, it's just not going to be possible. He's either not going to have the funding or the legal
1:46.8	authority for it. And then for other stuff, I mean, I don't know, I welcome it. He's significantly to the left of me on a lot of economic policy. So if he tries stuff and it fails, then I can just point to that go, look, like these are bad ideas. We shouldn't do them anymore. If he tries
1:58.9	it and it works, then I, you know, maybe I reconsider it. I'm like, oh, maybe somehow there's some
2:03.0	kind of external force that
2:04.2	makes it so the city backing grocery stores or the city, you know, investing more in like
2:09.2	rent control property is actually a good thing. And then I would change my views on it. So,
2:12.7	how are you approaching the issue? So are you looking at this going, okay, well, the economy is obviously
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Impact Theory, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Impact Theory and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.