Credit Union Exam Solutions Presents With Flying Colors

Treichel: Hey everyone, this is
Mark Treichel with another episode

of With Flying Colors and I'm here
with John McKechnie and Jeff Pacino.

How are you guys doing today?

Geoff: John's probably a
little better than I am.

Treichel: A little bit.

It's interesting times.

And so we are going to discuss today
The impact on credit unions of the

elections that happened yesterday.

So we're recording this on November 6th.

Yesterday Donald Trump was
elected to take over as president.

And there's other positions in the Senate
and the House that are changing hands.

And as we speak we know that
the Republicans are also going

to gain control of the Senate.

It's still.

Up in the air on the house, but they
have a lead there, and some of these

things are going to have, elections have
consequences, and it's going to impact how

credit unions face the next four years.

But before we jump into that, why
don't we do some quick introductions?

John, why don't you go first on
your credit union background for

those listeners who may not have
heard you on the show before?

John: Sure.

Thank you.

Thanks, Mark.

And looking forward to this.

And Jeff and I are old friends
from our CUNA days as well as NCUA.

I was a congressional staffer.

I went to work for CUNA in 1981,
April Fool's Day, obviously, 1987.

That makes perfect sense for me.

Was at CUNA for 18 years.

And then I became a pre
under president George W.

Bush, I was named to a position with
his administration as the head of

congressional and public affairs at
NCOA, which is where I got to know Mark.

And was there for five and a half, I
think, of the most eventful years in

the history of our industry during
the the mortgage market crisis

of the late 2008 2009 2010 era.

And since 2011, I've hung out my
shingle and I'm doing a lot of

credit union advocacy work with
leagues, individual credit unions.

Do some work with True Stage, the
insurance company and one of the home

loan banks, federal home loan bank.

So I've kept my hand in the
financial services world.

Treichel: Very good.

It's hard.

It's hard once you taste it to let go,
cause it's it's a lot of fun and it helps.

It helps make makes the
economy run here and.

Helps everybody in the country.

So Jeff a little bit of your background.

Geoff: Oh, let's see.

After meeting John originally,
we were both at CUNA a long

time ago in a galaxy far away.

I was fortunate enough to have
been appointed by Bill Clinton

to serve on the NCUA board.

That's also where I first met Mark.

And as the story I always tell, and
if you're listening, remember, you

were the one who told me which parking
space to take the first day of job.

Treichel: Got it.

You gotta get a good spot in that lot.

There's not many of them.

Geoff: You said you
took Norm DeMore's job.

You might as well take his parking spot.

So I left the left NCOA and
then was appointed by George W.

Bush to be on the Federal
Housing Finance Board.

So I do get some bona fides
as a fairly bipartisan person.

There you go.

Since leaving the finance
board I've been off on my own.

I've got a company called
Buccaneer Associates.

It's always clever to use your own name.

And we do a handful of things.

We run a couple of trade associations
one for internal audit risk folks.

The Metropolitan Area Credit Union
Management Association and the National

Council of Postal Credit Unions.

So

Treichel: that's about it.

Very good.

Very good.

And so yesterday we
had the 2024 elections.

And as I mentioned President,
former President Trump is going

to Become president again, and
that will have some ramifications.

Some other things that happened
Sherrod Brown, Sherrod Brown,

however you pronounce it, he lost.

He's the head of the banking committee.

And then other things are happening
in the Senate and the House.

So let's just kick this
off as what do you see?

Happening moving forward.

And how do you see this impacting
the credit unions that the 45,

4, 600 credit unions out there
once these changes take effect?

Geoff: I'll tell you what, John,
I'll defer to agent intelligence.

You got both on me.

So you go first.

John: That's very kind of you.

I'll tell you a quick, funny story.

So years ago, there was
DC named Tommy Boggs.

He was like considered to be the
most well connected lobbyist.

His father had been the House Majority
Leader, his sister, some of you may

remember being a TV personality, Cokie
Roberts on ABC News, but he was considered

to be the best lobbyist in town.

His connections were mainly on the side
and when the Democrats lost control

of the House in 1994 after 40 years of
control, a reporter walked up to him the

day afterward and he said, hey Tommy,
what do you think the Republican taking

the majority, what's that going to mean?

And he goes I don't know.

I've only been a
Republican for about a day.

The this place changes hands occasionally.

I will also say before I directly address
Mark's question, the toxicity of the way

that the political process has evolved.

In the last, I think in the last 20
years, I think since the Bush Gore 2000

race, where everything just was so tight.

And I think a lot of hard feelings, plus
the prevalence of the internet has made

people more tribal in their thinking.

I, for one, am a, Jeff and I are of
different parties, but we get along

and we like to have discussions
and debates and try to convince

somebody and persuade somebody.

After Trump was almost assassinated
this summer, I was in a restaurant

that night and a waitress said,
I'm sorry, the guy missed.

I didn't sign up for this to
be in a system where you try

to kill your adversaries.

That's not what we do in this country.

So I want every, I hope everybody
calms down and just realizes.

There are more important
things than a campaign.

And frankly, after it's all said
and done, we're all Americans.

Let's just let's just live
good lives and get stuff done.

That's my soapbox.

I'm going to, I'm going to also say
I think for credit unions, there's

going to be some obvious differences
on the Hill Democrats in the majority

in the Senate, Sherrod Brown was
a good friend of credit unions.

My Ohio credit union friends really
did have a great relationship with him.

I think now that the Republicans
have majority there, it looks

like they're going to try their
hand at tax reform next year.

And I think both of you know how
important that is to our industry.

And I think I'm going to stop for
a second, let Jeff get in here.

But I think credit unions need to
really roll up their sleeves and

get ready for a potential tax fight
because the bankers have, if anything,

turned up the volume on their attacks.

And unfortunately, I think they have
some people on the Hill who are listening

and maybe some of the Republican members
are a little bit more friendly toward.

Toward the small, smaller banks.

So we're gonna have to I think
we've got great arguments.

Don't get me wrong, but we're gonna
have to work a little bit next year.

Yeah,

Geoff: I think John's absolutely right.

And, the funny thing is we are of opposite
parties and we are still friends, but

we are in the words of In the words of
Will Ferrell, we're old school, we are

the ones that, understand that in a way
this is all star wrestling to a degree.

I don't think a lot of people get that.

I remember I had a friend
who worked down the hill.

He worked for Senator Jim Bunning.

And at one point he said there
were three people he trusted.

There was a lobbyist at the
American Bankers Association.

There was a lobbyist at the Independent
Insurance Agents of America and me.

And he repeated this line enough
that someone came to me and said,

what do you have on Rick Robinson
that Rick keeps telling everybody

you're the only three trusts?

You want to know something?

I don't know.

But Rick would also call sometimes
whenever the ABA lobbyist or I

would pick on him and he once
said to me, he goes, what is this?

The lobbyist employment act of whatever
year we were in, and it just got us to the

point where you realize, yes, that we can
get along, but nobody gets along anymore.

And that's the problem.

And John's absolutely right.

When Republicans come in,
it's going to be different.

And look, we figured out four
years ago, Trump was different.

He was a different breed of
cat, as you'd like to say.

No offense to anybody who lives in
Springfield, Ohio, but the reality is

that things are going to be different.

And when you're looking to pay
off the deficit that we have.

shortfall we have, everyt I understand
that it's cr and I've been doing this

a lot of times when the specter of
it, people it's really not there.

I 120 percent of john, it is there

John: Ever since the middle of this year,
you've been hearing a constant drumbeat

on Capitol Hill from really both Democrats
and Republicans that because the 2017

tax law is going to expire in 2025, both
parties want to get tax reform done.

They have different priorities.

But what one thing that I have heard
from the tax writing members of Congress,

Democrat and Republican, is that they're
going to take a 360 degree look At

all the exemptions and some of those
people have looked me right in the eye

and looked and I've had I've been With
crediting people in these meetings

and they've said their creditings.

Look i'm not Interested in putting
you at the top of the list of

entities that need to be taxed.

But I am saying that you're
going to be under the microscope,

just like everybody else.

And a Democrat said a 360 degree
review is going to happen.

About a half an hour later,
I was with a Republican and

he used the same terminology.

It's, I think we just have to
be, we don't have to be afraid.

I don't like to go into this business or
anything on Capitol Hill with fear, but.

We have to be vigilant.

I think we have to be concerned
for the reasons you have then

about the need for money that
could help plug the deficit hole.

It's, I was on the Hill in 1986, where
in Ronald Reagan and Dan Rostenkowski

brokered this famous tax bill.

I think you could have a similar
dynamic in the people of both

parties want to get something done.

Geoff: I think it's Mark.

You're right.

We don't know how with a house.

I'm sorry.

Say that again.

We don't want it with the houses yet.

But if Trump enjoys a trifecta it becomes
a lot harder to stop things once they

get started, if they get started in the
majority, if Republicans are the ones

bringing it up, and no one's willing
to step in, a long time ago, we had a

guy named Byron Dorgan, who raised up,
as a Democrat with, A democratic house.

It's a lot easier, a democrat rising
up in a republican house doesn't

get the same Consideration so

Treichel: sure.

Yeah, the gridlock if they
control everything there's no

gridlock and once it's baked

Geoff: Not a whole lot of
people can stop things so right.

Yeah,

Treichel: And you talk about the
what I want to say one thing on the

tax What comes to my mind is the
importance of america's credit unions?

Kuna's, gac this year because it What you
guys taught me was that the turnout that

the credit unions get when they show up
and they go see their congressman is huge.

And that's a very powerful tool generally
speaking, but probably this year is

the, if you're set another way, if
your credit union can afford to go

this coming year or one of the next two
years, you might want to focus on this.

Yeah, that's

John: a great point, Mark.

And I would just say that the
expectation on Capitol Hill.

Is that they're going to try to do
something on tax reform pretty quickly in

the new year for a number of procedural
reasons So look, I have a lot of faith in

the credit union movement I have a lot of
faith in our people's ability to be very

persuasive lobbyists the best advocates we
have are not people like jeff and I it's

the crediting people from back home Yeah
extol the virtues of them getting involved

and staying involved and there really is
no substitute for credit union visible

credit unit activists making our case.

Treichel: One other thing that what
one other thing that you one of you

brought up was 2000, I think, Jeff.

And at that point in time, that
when Bush won and beat Gore, And the

board was was it you, Yolanda and

Geoff: the Democrats won Republican?

Yeah.

Treichel: And I just remember when
I was a deputy executive director

and Dennis Dollar knew he was going
to be becoming the chair and the

paperwork was going to move quick.

And I went down to his office
and he said, don't do anything in

a wheat administration that you
don't think a dollar administration

would want in 4 weeks because I
know I'm going to be in charge.

He goes.

So so keep flying that
plane around the airport.

And so those types of.

Of things are starting to fall
into the minds of the staff at N.

C.

U.

A.

Right?

Because Chairman Todd Harper
is Chairman Todd Harper.

But come January wants.

Trump gets his sea legs and
starts, figuring out what his

first priority to sign is.

The second priority, you're
going to see Hal Huffman.

Become at least interim chair of N.

C.

U.

A.

Right.

Any thoughts on those machinations?

And, and, and whatnot.

Geoff: This one I'm gonna crack
first since, since I remember

what it was like to be there.

Look, back then in 2000, Yolanda
Wheat was made chairman and I think

she was chairman for about a month.

But it was pretty out.

Treichel: It seemed like a year, Jeff.

Geoff: It did seem like a while,
but especially from people she hired

and we had to let go, but look,
I knew there were two Democrats

and one Republican on the board.

We had a Republican president.

I may not be the smartest guy
in the world sometimes, but I

figured at some point Dennis Dollar
was going to be the chairman.

And sure enough, he was, and he
had the qualifications, he had the

connections, he had the people.

So it was a given thing.

Now, as I've said often in the past,
and it's not a great revelation,

Dennis and I saw had similar views on
credit unions, which is why we tend to

decide along the same lines, he used
to call me a free market Democrat.

I still wear that badge of honor.

But the difference I think you have now
is you probably will have Kyle Hoffman

and I think again, since Trump's been
around the block once, he's going to

know that on January 20th or 21st,
there's going to be a blanket order.

I assume that every agency that
has two Republicans, here's the

Republican, one Republican, that
Republican's advanced up to chair.

The only difference that Kyle's
going to face is he's staring down

the same gun that Todd was when
it was Bobby Hood and Kyle Hoppen

in that he didn't have the votes.

He can still get out and vote.

He can be the chairman in name only, which
in reality is what Todd had to do for the

first, what was it, John, year and a half?

John: Yeah he was the, he
was a minority chairman.

And, I think you've, you both have
hit on the right answer about the

likelihood, although nothing's guaranteed.

I know that there's, there are no
certainties in Washington, but I

think that it's very likely that the
incoming president Trump is going

to make a lot of personnel changes.

I have heard through the, I have a
window into the Trump administration,

people like before the election, these
people were talking about transition,

now they're actually really talking about
it, but some of the things they've said

is that, in agencies that are headed by
people who are Biden appointees, they're

going to be replaced by Trump appointees.

NCOA doesn't rate high enough to
hear anybody say, oh yeah, we're

going to go after NCOA, but I can,
I think it's reasonable to expect.

On January 20th or somewhat
shortly after the president may

look at that and remove Todd.

He can do that with a stroke.

He doesn't have to go through.

You can, he can name Kyle Hauptman
as chairman without having sent it.

Treichel: Great point.

Yep.

John: Yeah, and I think, Mr.

Haldeman, from what I've seen
sitting in the audience and any

conversations I've had, he seems
to be much more of a deregulatory,

a typical Republican philosophy.

Less regulation a little bit
skeptical of additional regulation.

He has openly disagreed with
Chairman Harper on things

like overdraft protection.

I think he probably has some
skepticism about third party vendor.

We'll see, but The point is, I
think change is in the air and

our agency, plus I think CFPB is
probably going to have changes also.

So there's some stuff's going to happen.

Treichel: Yeah, that's
that the CFPB reference.

That's that's.

Spot on it.

And consumer compliance.

Chairman Harper is big
on consumer compliance.

You mentioned shared rafts.

They've got the budget.

They just issued their budget.

They're doing their budget
briefing in November.

He will vote.

This will be ironically his 1st
vote where he's had 2 Democrats.

To get what he wants, and then
shortly thereafter, he will be a

board member, but not the chair.

If what we're saying plays out, which, I'm

John: certain it will.

But Mark, Mr.

Altman's term is expiring in August.

So he may underline the word may, he
may only be chairman from January.

until August, or the president could
decide if he's doing a good job.

I'll keep you right in that seat.

But exactly,

Treichel: yeah, exactly right.

Plus, yeah.

And so with that August term coming up,
then you get into, okay who gets slotted

to, if he does go, maybe he goes somewhere
else, and helping goes do something else.

And someone comes in here.

They have that transition team.

It'll be, Who's on that transition
team is sometimes a hint at

who, who could be coming in.

I think Debbie Max was on
a transition team at N.

C.

U.

A.

and came back.

If I'm not mistaken, Friesel yeah,
Friesel the same thing, so between.

Then in August he may be a short time
help, and maybe a short time acting chair

and then shortly to follow after that.

But the consumer compliance
side of it, I will say, I'm

still digging into his budget.

I was anticipating Chairman Harper would
maybe go more aggressive on changes

and staffing on consumer compliance.

There were some modest tweaks to that.

Less than I plot based on some of
his statements might be coming.

John: I, I was a little
surprised by that myself.

I didn't expect it to go light on that.

I thought he was going to go,
especially on the fair lending side.

Treichel: Yeah.

Yeah.

So there's not the budget.

Challenges that not having two votes
as a Republican are not as big as

they might've been had it been more
of a land grab and adding staff.

So Jeff any thoughts on that?

Geoff: I think you both are
absolutely right on this.

Cause that has been one of Todd's focuses.

And again, when it was
Rodney and Kyle and Todd.

Todd didn't have the votes, so you
could put it in there and you knew you

were gonna, you weren't gonna get it.

And to this, Todd's a good politician
nothing against some of the

previous chairman, a little before
him, but sometimes it didn't help

to get him to a shouting contest
if he a already had the votes.

Or B, didn't have the votes.

It doesn't do any good.

And while in the past, I think
Todd could have been a little

more acerbic with comments.

He wasn't.

He was more measured.

And I think he, again, politically
understands it's a long game.

I will say this Kyle's term, as you both
said, is up in August of 2025, but we,

all three of us know, and especially
you, Mark, cause you were there through

a lot of this process, The chairman slot
holds a different allure for potential

nominees than just a board member slot.

Okay.

So if, and as it stands right now,
Kyle's seat would be the chairman slot.

It's the only Republican slot.

So when his term is up, that person
is most likely to be named chairman.

And so it would be very interesting to
see what this brings out of the woodwork.

Potential not need.

I will say this.

And again, I.

The last three board members, the
current board members that we have

were all Capitol Hill staffers before.

And this is the first time
we've had Capitol Hill staffers.

Okay we've had credit union people.

We've had what I would call friends
of the president, someone like

Elizabeth Burkhardt Or Shirley Bonet.

Then you've had people that were
connected politically to the president,

but new credit unions, Dennis Dollar,
Dave Chatfield, I throw myself in there.

That we knew credit is coming in.

Let me

John: go to bat right here.

We need a credit union
person on this board.

There's a prohibition in the law
against having more than one.

But we don't have any, I think we should
rewrite the federal credit act to say

that there should be at least there's,
there could be no more than one, but

no less than one either, because we
need a perspective of somebody who

has sat behind the desk a CEO or
a board member of a credit union.

We just need somebody with industry
experience who can balance some of

the viewpoints that are important
when the board makes decisions.

Treichel: That's a great point.

I just want to say on the chair being
an apple that someone's going to want

to grab and as the as you guys know,
remind the listeners that the federal

credit union acts as the chairman
is the spokesperson of the agency.

While the board votes on things, there are
powers that are built into the delegations

where the chairman can issue the
letters to credit unions, control that.

He's the finals.

He or she is the final
say relative to that.

So it's a while it's 1 3rd of the votes.

It's a very powerful position the way
that the agency is structured in a way.

Just being the chair works based
on the Federal Credit Union Act.

Jeff, you were going to say something

Geoff: I was going to
pick up on John's thought.

It is obviously we would like
a credit union person there.

And I will say this.

Luckily, for example, I don't think Kyle
came in with a huge knowledge of credits.

He had financial services, but he
brought Syracuse and Apple Bank with him.

Who obviously has a deep reservoir of
experience, and so sometimes you can,

you've got to make up for it, but I
will say I agree with John's point.

We should have one person that knows
credit unions because, frankly, it takes

a while for anybody new that doesn't,
isn't familiar with the industry.

And obviously now we've just
got America's credit unions.

In fact, we had CUNA, NAFQ, ACUAL, Q's.

We had a whole soup, a whole alphabet
soup of names that someone had to know.

Again, I had a benefit.

I worked with Dennis had a benefit.

He'd work.

Friesel had a benefit.

He had worked with him
as a state regulator.

But if you haven't, it takes you a while.

So it'd be great to have someone
who knows pretty experience.

But as I said, I think cranes have to
understand that But that job coming

up in August, the Kyle spot, and
as John said, he could, if Kyle's

doing a great job, you get to stay
until your successor is confirmed.

John: So the president, by the way, he
reminded me that because you will have

a president And the Senate, which is
majority Republican, that may be, that may

make it more apt for Trump to say, look,
I can get one of my new people confirmed

through a Republican Senate easier than
I could just, if we had a Democratic

Senate tomorrow or next year the president
may just be more inclined to leave.

Mr.

Haltman in place because you
might have trouble getting him

through a Democratic Senate.

With a Republican Senate,
though, who knows?

The president will have, I'm
sure he's got a whole pile of

resumes on his desk as we speak.

One other thing I want to mention about
the Senate Banking Committee, Tim Scott,

who's a very capable senator from South
Carolina, a Republican, will ascend to

the chair of The Senate banking committee,
unless he decides to accept a Senate

appoint administration appointment.

And I want to say something about Tim
Scott, South Carolina, conservative,

Republican, African American.

He served in the house before he
became a Senator and the district he

represented from the house was Charleston,
downtown Charleston, South Carolina.

That's the district where
the civil war started.

And I've always been impressed by the idea
that district where that history occurred.

Was able to elect a Republican,
conservative Republican.

It shows how much attitudes and
thoughts and perceptions have changed.

And I feel good about that, that's
a sign that maybe the country's

getting better on certain issues.

Treichel: It's a great point.

That's a great point.

So guys any other thoughts that material
things that pop into your head John.

John: Guess who's going to
be the number one Democrat on

the Senate Banking Committee?

You had Sherrod Brown defeated.

Second ranking Democrat on the Senate
Banking Committee is a guy named Jack

Reed, who is also currently the chairman
of the Armed Services Committee.

He ain't going to give up that job
to take banking, I promise you.

Third would be Mark Warner,
Virginia Senator, who Jeff knows.

And he's somebody who is chairman of
the Senate Intelligence Committee.

He's not going to relinquish that.

Following him is John Tester from
Montana, who was defeated last night.

So guess who the fifth ranking Democrat
is on the Senate banking committee.

I get to guess.

Yes.

Is

Geoff: it a Senator from Massachusetts?

John: Yes.

Yes, it is.

What's her name?

Yes, it is.

Elizabeth Warren.

If this were

Geoff: jeopardy, I'm going
to say, who is Elizabeth

John: Warren?

She's going to be the top
Democrat on the banking committee.

She is definitely going to stir
the pot for better or for worse.

She is a force already, but now
that she's going to be the top

Democrat, it'll be interesting.

And

Treichel: you think she might have
some things to say about CFPB if

she gets if that all plays out.

John: Yeah, maybe.

Geoff: Democrats, if they earn
the minority in both the House

and the Senate, obviously just
become, the loyal opposition

party, for want of a better term.

And, the danger is, and especially
with, with the non cloture number for

Supreme Court nominees and appointments.

I saw where Mitch McConnell came out today
and said, we're keeping the filibuster.

I'm going to be honest with you.

To me, the filibuster ended
when Harry Reid changed it

from 60 to 51 for presidential
appointments with the promise.

We aren't going to do this
for Supreme Court justices.

And then a handful of years later,
we did it for Supreme Court justice.

So my point is, you can have
the filibuster in place.

It's interesting.

But the reality is where it used to come
into play as John knows, we're both yeah.

Appointments where you did somebody didn't
want somebody or Supreme Court justices.

And for that, you just need
to look at Robert Bork.

We now see you've got Borked if
you don't get if you don't get

in after you were nominated.

So it's Democrats are really in a
tough spot here that, and frankly,

even if Elizabeth Warren is the ranking
member, she's the ranking minority.

She's not the chairperson that
takes with it a lot of influence.

And you basically just get
to kick and scream a lot.

And then that's it.

She's,

John: she's

Geoff: good

John: at that.

Yeah.

The next two years going to put
a premium on us being really

sharp, really up our game.

And when I say our, the entire industry,
everybody's got a role to play, a

lot of work to be done, I think.

And with the new administration
and new Congress we're going to

have some interesting days ahead.

Geoff: And John, you and I both know
that the historic trend is that midterms.

of a president usually su in both
the House and Sen in two years.

I know we j yesterday.

So God forbid

The Democrats have a much more
favorable map in terms of Senate races.

And, what you, John's absolutely right.

What you have to be careful of is
you can't let the pendulum swing too

far for you because the same people
that are ranking minority members in

2025 could be the chairman in 2027,
and so you also have to mind your P's

and Q's from that standpoint as well.

Treichel: And so the Trump administration
has two years to get things done.

And I guess it's connecting to something.

I think John said earlier, because
they've been there once, they

understand, the importance of
speed and how to move quickly.

They'll, which also plays into moving
the tax situation quickly, right?

They know they've got two years
before the next election and

they know how to do it better.

So things could happen quick.

Geoff: Yeah.

The other interesting thing is obviously
Trump, this is his second term.

It's non consecutive.

So we think he's only the second
president for that, but You

know that he's got four years.

That's it.

This is almost like being governor
of Virginia where you have one term.

Sure.

And you do everything you want and you
don't have to worry about reelection.

So in a way, he doesn't have
to worry about running again.

And yet at the same time, starting
in 2027, which is historically two

years out from the election, everybody
knows, okay, you're lame duck.

So then you start the succession party is
who's going to take over things like that.

So it's going to be a very interesting
couple of years of credit unions

really, and I know that the John's
been doing John does a lot of

being a lot more than I ever do.

And he does very well.

And I know he's going to
stay on top of his man.

He's right.

We're both hired guns, the people they
want to hear from are the credit union.

So stuff like the G.

A.

C.

is important.

Like the hill visits are important.

Staying in touch with members when
they're back in the district is important.

And cranes just need to make
sure they continue to do that.

Treichel: Fantastic advice.

Any other John, any other blast
thoughts as we wrap this up?

John: That's I was up almost all
night, so I think I'm about to

fall asleep on the keyboard here.

The

Geoff: only thing I would say is.

Is the house is not officially
settled, but if it is, and with

Patrick McHenry retiring, silver
house, financial services,

John: that's a real jump ball.

You've got, I think last I've
heard from both democratic and

Republican sources on the Hill is
that they expect the house to be 223.

Republican to 21, no, two, two 23 to
two 12 in favor of the Republican.

So that's a majority, which coincidentally
is what this last Congress started at.

So it's a, it was tight at the
beginning of the 118th Congress.

There'll be the same numbers in the 119th.

I think the Republicans
are going to keep it.

And you're going to have a real Donnie
Brooke to get, to be the chair of the

financial services committee between
really four, very competent, popular guys.

French Hill from Arkansas, Andy
Barr from Kentucky, Frank Lucas from

Oklahoma, Bill Huizenga from Michigan.

Those guys all are trying for it
and we'll see who comes out ahead

next week because they're going to
have their leadership elections.

Geoff: Now, what about Ways and Means?

Vernon Buchanan is still a

John: No he's not gonna, I
don't think he's gonna try.

It's gonna be Jason
Smith again, although Mr.

Buchanan tried, but I think
he's gonna step back and let

Jason Smith chair, I think.

Geoff: That answered my question.

I usually go to John when
I want to get answer about,

Treichel: That's right.

Guys, this was fun.

I only have one other thing and
Jeff, I want to let you know that

Sam Darnold is a free agent at the
end of the year in case the Bears are

ready to move on from Caleb Williams.

I know it's I know it's
early, about halfway, but

Geoff: anyway,

I am very happy.

I'm very happy with Caleb Williams.

I, he is the future of the Bears.

And when we figure out a
way to pry, what's the name?

Ben Smith from the lions to
probably take over for Ibra floofs.

If we could do it mid season, I'd
be happy to, but I just got a funny

feeling it's hard to get an assistant
to quit and take another job.

Ibra

Treichel: floofs might
get might get Caleb hurt.

He keeps them running around back

John: there.

That's me.

And from my perspective, I'm a Ravens fan.

We're so sick and tired of Lamar.

We can't, we will get, we'll unload him.

Yeah.

He's having such a tough season.

We're very fortunate.

Geoff: Out of the three of us.

You're the only one that's
really said it quarterback.

I think I am.

And Mark, you got to just
decide, do you want do you want

Sam or you want to bring JJ in?

Treichel: I'm ready for JJ.

I like Sam.

I appreciate what he's doing.

We last week we had the full Sam
Darnold experience, two crazy

interceptions and about five amazing
passes, but let's bring on JJ.

All

Geoff: Well, I'm keep, I'm keeping
Caleb and if, yeah, you should, if Ryan

pulls the bears, general manager watches
this, he's more than happy to call me.

I'll give you my number mark.

He can reach out to you.

Treichel: You should keep them.

I think he's the third most
talented rookie from this class.

Geoff: Nice try.

Oh my god, I cannot wait to get a new
coach and to start riding the Vikings.

Treichel: Next year you can
remind me of these statements.

Geoff: I will, because you
know what, this is all taped.

I want you to record

Treichel: it.

We have recordings.

All right guys, I really appreciate
your time and listeners, I want

to thank you for listening.

This is Mark Treichel signing
off with Flying Colors.