Bert Martinez:
Today on the show. Norm. Blumenthal man, I am excited to have Norm on the show. He’s going to be talking about some changes that I think you and I will find very interesting. It’s just to me. It’s a great idea. But anyway, Norm Blumenthal is an attorney for workers and consumers selected as one of the top attorneys in Southern California. Norm was also inducted and recognized as one of America’s most trusted lawyers in employment law, Norm Blumenthal, welcome back.
Lawyer Norm Blumenthal:
Nice to be back, Bert. what I want to talk about today is. what is are the bullet points that the Democrats need to concentrate on to take back Congress in 26.
You know they have to have the bullet points that that people are going to be in favor of, and they have to stop worrying about what is, you know, socially correct and worry more about what is going to bring the people back to their ballot box. I think Trump has proven that he is a Republican. He’s pro concentration of wealth in in the in the wealthy, and he really doesn’t much care about the middle class or or lower class in helping them as can be seen by his big bad bill.
So what do the Democrats have to do. What do they have to sell? And so, you know, it’s a sales pitch, because you’re going against the best salesman in the world, and so you have to be able to to beat him in his own game. Everybody is very unhappy about people with without current ids they can’t go to work.
They can’t go to the movies. They can’t go out. And you know, he’s basically destroyed a lot of people’s life just through the paranoia of arrest and deportation. So the first thing to do is the easy part is, everybody will agree, I hope, by now is to keep the borders closed to illegals, and I think Trump’s done a good job of closing the borders, and we should be all be in favor of knowing who’s here and keeping the borders closed.
We’ve always pitched that as as the thing to do, and Biden kind of threw that by the wayside and think that’s what cost the Democrats the election. One thing also, next thing they have to do is is this big bad bill? If you make over a million dollars a year. you’re not. You’re not going to get any tax benefits from the bill.
You’re gonna pay your taxes. So you know the people making over a million dollars a year. The velocity of money is just not there. You can’t. You can only spend so much on so many things. And you’re making 10 million 20 million 30 million baseball players, a hundreds of millions. You can’t spend it. And so you end up. you know, putting it into the stock market. That says how you see, because the velocity of money is is turning to a crawl. There’s there’s no turnover, there’s no spence and spending. And what ends up happening is people end up with it, putting it into to the bank. Those are the 1st 2 points.
Bert Martinez:
You know what? And and I’m glad you brought these up. I think that you call it a sales pitch, and you’re right. I think all politicians have a sales pitch. I like to, you know. I like to kind of refer to it. You have to be able to sell that vision.
If everybody can see the vision, then there’s a reason to vote, and I think you’re spot on, as far as at least one of the reasons that Biden and the Democrats lost so badly was just the, I think, their lack of concern about the border, and this idea that men should be allowed to not only play women’s sports, but to change in women’s locker rooms.
I think that also affected them, but we could talk about that another time. But I love this. You know. I think, that right now, more than ever the Democrats need to come up with a vision or a sales pitch that is going to answer these questions that they have? Which is, how am I? Gonna you know? How am I going to stay ahead of this increasing costs.
And what can I do to eliminate or reduce my taxes? And I think that you’re hitting the the you know the what do you call it, hitting the nail on the head.
Lawyer Norm Blumenthal:
Yeah, give the tax deduction to people making less than a million dollars a year. That’s easy. And if you’re making over a million dollars a year. You pay the taxes that you should be paying without this big bad bill coming in and giving you more money than you deserve in the great scheme of things.
So that’s I think those 2 are easy and keeping the borders closed, and also the 3rd one’s real easy. No changes in Medicaid funding. You can’t take food off the table. Of someone that has none. You just can’t do that. You can’t take away their, you know. Snap program and child care program and funding for medical needs of of people. You can’t do that. It’s the only civilized country in the world that does this to its citizens, and that’s what how they’re going to give the Republicans their big additional tax break.
Make no mistake about it. This is a Republican Bill, and we’ve always talked about management and labor. And what ends up happening is trump has managed to convince the working class to vote for him for reasons like you talk about the idea of men and women’s sports, you know.
That’s that’s 1 where you can get people. Yeah, women, men shouldn’t be playing women’s sports. I mean, it’s it’s a medical change in just like steroids. You shouldn’t have steroids in sports. This is also a medical advantage that people take advantage of which you know fine if you want to change your sex. Fine, but you can’t participate in sports. I I agree with that, and I don’t. I don’t think there should be any issues with that, and you can leave it up to the States, but that’s neither here nor there. That’s not an issue. That’s not a hot button issue that that’s going to get votes closing the borders. No tax breaks for people making over a million dollars.
No changes in the Medicaid funding. Now we’re down to housing, so we’ve got some money in the bank. You’re not going to pay. You’re going to get the tax break if you have make under a million dollars a year. So out in California, the San Diego school district just passed the a law or voted on a pro a prospect where they’re gonna build housing on school property for teachers and other personnel, so that they have affordable housing in the school district where they are. And so that’s in its formative stage. But that’s another big concept, affordable housing for school personnel. And so that that’s another thing you want to deal with.
Bert Martinez:
Absolutely look the I think that right now a lot of people are concerned about all the massive changes. Right? We have this Crazy Bill, and and people have read through this bill, and it is cutting. They’re trying to cut funding not only for Medicaid, but social security. And and at the same time. What I find interesting is we’ve had this. I don’t know what you want to call it distraction circus thing, where Elon was supposedly trying to cut 2 trillion dollars from our budget and and the chaos that ensues.
And we’re not saving any money because all of these people that are being laid off illegally are being returned back to work. And in the interim there’s multiple lawsuits. So we’re not saving any money. And then, second of all in this bill. Not only are they are they again attacking. in my opinion, the less fortunate the senior citizens, but you’re also adding, I think the Bill calls for adding 5 trillion dollars to the budget, and I believe President Trump is trying to eliminate the what do you call it? The ceiling.
He wants to remove the spending ceiling, and so it to me. It doesn’t make sense. What was all this stuff with Elon Musk, if all you’re going to do is add more debt. It’s a it’s a confusing bill. A lot of them are. But this one’s extremely confusing for that reason.
But the fact that they’re targeting social security and Medicaid. For what reason, like you said, you’re going to make it harder for people who can barely make it. Now. how can a human sit there and say, Yeah. these people, they’re already struggling. Let’s make it even harder for them again, Norm, it doesn’t make sense.
Lawyer Norm Blumenthal:
Doesn’t. Well, you know. Unfortunately, the electorate is felony stupid. When it comes to voting they don’t vote for their what’s best for them. They vote for all these hot button issues that that trump comes up with, you know, men and women’s sports and and hot button issues. And so what you fix literally. No, no, nobody.
Bert Martinez:
A tiny tiny tiny percentage.
Lawyer Norm Blumenthal:
Yeah. And so for that, they’re gonna give up Medicaid. They’re gonna give up But they’re they’re tax breaks. They’re going to give up everything, and all the money is going to go to the the wealthy. And that’s where we’re headed. We’re headed to another Gilded Age. where a small percentage of the population. a tremendous percentage of the money. And it’s there’s no velocity to the money you get.
Bert Martinez:
I’m glad you brought that up. I’m going to interrupt you. I apologize, but I want you to explain velocity of money to our listeners.
Lawyer Norm Blumenthal:
Okay, velocity of money. You make a hundred $1,000 a year. If you make a hundred $1,000 a year in in this country. You’re gonna spend every penny. you know. It’s just between affordable housing which we’ll get to and food and and entertainment and all the things you may have.
You’re you’re going to spend 100. Let’s assume that that’s true, and I think it is. But let’s say in you make 2 million dollars a year, and so, and they have tax breaks in it so that you keep most of it. You’re not going to be able to spend it unless you’re going to be extravagant.
You’re not going to be able to spend it. Make 10 million dollars a year. Some of these people are making 100 million dollars a year. You can’t spend it. So what ends up happening? There’s no velocity to that money. You put it in the stock market. You buy crypto crypto has no value. It’s there’s there’s nothing behind the curtain. It’s the Wizard of Oz.
Yet people, because they have so much extra capital. They have no place to put it, and it’s a greater fool theory. They keep buying it, and it keeps goes goes up. you know, Bitcoin, with the original. It. Starters of Bitcoin, and my understanding of it is is that they paid 80 cents per share, and now it’s over a hundred 1,000 a share. So but there’s no value, you know.
There’s nothing there they can’t spend it. There’s just no place to put the money, and so the money has no velocity. There’s no turnover, there’s no, it doesn’t go in the gross domestic product, and so there’s less and less money in circulation. That’s velocity.
The guy that’s spending it on the food. The money goes to the food, to the grocery stores. The grocery store pays its employees. pays its rent, pays for the food and keeps, and it keeps going. And it spent all over, and the person has a job makes his money back. That’s velocity.
You want as much velocity as you can get in your dollar. And right now we’re getting less and less because the money is in the hands of fewer and fewer people. So that’s a problem that we need to face and giving tax breaks to millionaires and billionaires is just not something that we want to be behind.
And another reason to vote for. Democrats will put this behind them. And you know you got to go against Trump and all of his great ads and these brilliant at at advertising. He’s brilliant at what he does, and you gotta look past that and look to what’s good for you. And so the that that’s what a velocity is.
Lawyer Norm Blumenthal:
I think the the best visual you can have of this is, you know. when Obama was elected President he attracted a few 1 million people to the, to the Mall for his inauguration when Trump was elected here. He couldn’t even fill the Congressional Hall of a few 1,000 people, because that was all he had were the oligarchs and the people of the new Gilded Age that we’re living through right now. So that’s where the money.
All is going, and the debt we’re now at 30 something trillion dollars. It’s going to be up another 5 or so trillion, and they’re not dealing with that. That’s something they don’t want to talk about. And it’s bigger than all of us.
And so. You know, we don’t know how to handle it except for put somebody into office, that is, is going to be response responsible for at least getting a balanced budget in place where we aren’t increasing it. That would be wonderful. And then eventually turning it around, it’s going to have to happen.
And the way it’s going to happen is you tax the billionaires and trillionaires. We’re on our way now. And that’s the the focus of the taxation, not on people making a hundred $1,000 a year, or $200,000 a year. which brings us down to another big point. That needs to be addressed is affordable housing.
And right now I you know, I’m gonna try to explain this in the easiest way I can. Somebody owns a piece of of property. It’s an apartment building. It has 10 units. and he wants to sell it. He’s owned it for 20 years, and he wants to sell it for a million dollars. It’s a hundred 1,000 a unit. And the problem is under existing tax law. Because of prior depreciation, he would have taken on the property.
He has a negative what’s called a negative basis. and his his in. He would pay more in taxes when he sold it than he would receive. and so he doesn’t sell it. He can’t sell it. He has to either put it into an exchange at 1031, or gift it out to his children and and grandchildren who can’t sell it either. So there’s there’s no market for the for the property, not because there’s not big buyers that are interested, but because there’s sellers that just can’t afford to sell the property right.
And at the same time there’s potential people that would be interested in buying a unit in the property, but can’t afford the entire property. So what do you do? You incentivize the sale of of the property as condominiums. So if you own a 10 unit apartment building and you want to make a million dollars on it and you divide it up into 10 units.
That’s a hundred $1,000 a unit. and the seller gets to keep whatever money comes in without any recapture. and the buyers all get units at a hundred 1,000 a unit. So now we opened up a a massive new marketplace for the transfer of of ha affordable housing. instead of being rentals. Their ownership with this condiment, condomising the property.
Bert Martinez:
Yeah. And I love this idea it to me. It makes sense on so many different levels. As you pointed out already, it makes housing more affordable. It helps the sellers to easily get rid of these properties. It’s a win-win for everybody, especially again for the consumer, I mean. Look, the starter homes that most people are acquainted with. They’re all gone, I mean, you know you’re I guess you could still call them starter homes, but you’re paying 4 to 500 grand for them.
Lawyer Norm Blumenthal:
Yeah, yeah, a lot of times. Now builders, seeing that there’s, you know, instant profit in those homes. They don’t sell them. They go and and raise private capital, and they turn around what used to be a starter home at 400 to 500,000. They turn around and and make it a rental unit.
And so the same thing happens, you know, all over again. So the concept is, is that incentivize it? That you have to change the Federal tax law. to incentivize owners, to to condomize their property, so that instead of only being able to sell it as one property, you can sell it all the units separately make us money that you otherwise couldn’t because of recapture. And that’s a win situation for the seller.
And at the same time, because you’ve turned them into condos. It’ll be a win situation for the buyer so, and you only allow no private firms to buy it. Only allow individuals to buy into these units. So this is the concept to to get affordable housing with just a stroke of a pen. You don’t have to do anything else, and you can turn what would otherwise be not. No affordable housing into a glut of affordable housing.
Bert Martinez:
Yeah. And let me tell you, every state in our nation needs that right now the homelessness is I think an all time high. If you we spent quite a bit of time in Vegas, and you can go to many of the parks in Las Vegas. and you will see nice cars. Some of them are even brand new where people are living in the car. They have to live in their car. They have a job, and and they’re still living in a car because they cannot afford housing.
Lawyer Norm Blumenthal:
And that’s because people that own the housing can’t afford to sell it.
Because they would recapture all of the depreciation that they took on the property, but but at the time they owned it, because the tax laws do not reward. They’re ownership and transfer to affordable housing. They only reward them if they exchange it, and into other into more property or sell it as a block to a private equity firm.
So it’s it is a situation that the Democrats need to get behind and promote this change in the tax law to create affordable housing without being required to spend a bunch of money on building it because it already exists. But it just can’t come to market.
And so we need to work on that. We need to have affordable housing for school teachers and school personnel by allowing school districts. And you can start this right away. To build housing on school property, for teachers
need to have that kind of connection to the community by living on school property and and helping the teaching process.
So those 2 points are big democratic points. The idea that you know don’t end medicare funding, you know. Continue the medicare funding. Only give tax breaks to people making less than a million dollars a year and keep the borders closed to illegals. And you’re you’re on your way.
Bert Martinez:
Right? You know, I wanna bring this up specifically, because you have your, you’re a lawyer. You have this legal background and excuse me. One of the things included in the bill is a provision. That in my opinion, and I want to get your opinion on this undermines the rule of law. So one of the things that they’re trying to do that trump administration is trying to do as everybody’s already seen trump in administration does not like judges who rule against them.
They are trying to eliminate judges power, and so they, one of the things that they want to do in the bill is reduce the amount of power judges have. especially when it comes to things like holding somebody accountable or in contempt. So in the bill.
There’s a provision that would reduce those powers and actually reduce funding to make it even harder. So I want to get your thoughts on this is that a big deal? I mean, if if a judge’s powers are reduced, or if they cannot put somebody in contempt, what’s your take on this.
Lawyer Norm Blumenthal:
Well, yeah, I haven’t read the bill, so I just wanna put that caveat in. But as you as you describe it. it’s you know it breaks the the principle that no one’s above the law. and one of the cornerstones of the trump administration is that they’ve, in my opinion, have taken some people and some industries above the law. and that’s where we are where we are now.
And we have to live with with this unless we get the Democrats back in power, starting with Congress support.
putting the people in charge and not putting the the leaders in charge. And that’s what we have here. We have unlimited power to our leadership.
And that’s, you know, just small part of where we are. We? We need to get Congress back, and it’s what’s got to happen in this election, and the 1st thing we have to do is tell our representatives that we don’t believe in the big bad bill, and if they vote for it, that would be the last vote. They’re going to cast the election, and by the time that time that happens they won’t be getting reelected.
But the problem is, the Democrats are in disarray. They fight about the little things and miss the point. You know it’s a sales pitch. Trump gets it. He’s there, he he’s always selling. and the Democrats are always contesting they, you know, they come up with no plan.
So what we want to do today is come up with this 5 point plan to get the Democrats on the side of selling. But hope, you know. I expect that we won’t hear much of it, but unfortunately there are ideas out there. This isn’t the only one.
But there has to be a sales pitch from the Democrats that people can want to live with. And this 5 point plan would be a good start, giving people affordable housing.
Reducing their taxes if they make under a million dollars a year. Keeping our borders closed and protected and not messing around with Medicaid. I mean, that’s that’s not too much to ask, and all the Democrats should be behind this type of legislation.
Bert Martinez:
And I agree, I think, that as you mentioned, continue Medicare. And I think there’s ways to make Medicare more efficient. But you don’t have to gut it the way the bill wants to gut it.
I agree with you about closing the border. There’s nothing wrong with that we should know who’s in our country. And 60 min came out with a report. It’s available on YouTube, where 20%. I believe it’s 20% of the illegal immigrants coming over the border are from the Chinese, and they have video footage of the Chinese just coming in over the border.
And so when you look at our history with illegal aliens, most of these guys work hard and they send their money back to their to their families, the Chinese, it’s a different, completely different. Take these guys have money. They’re coming over and they’re not coming over here to work.
I look at you know there, there people are speculating as to what they’re doing here, reducing the taxes for working class stiffs again, that helps everybody. It’s one of those things that will really help 90% of the people, 80% of the people in affordable housing. Again. that’s only going to help 80% of the people.
It’s a huge win when you’re able to do these things. And I think, Norm, one of the issues with the Democratic party is they don’t have a clear leader as you’re saying, they’re constantly bickering among themselves. I just don’t see a clear leader. I don’t see anybody that people can point to and say, that’s the guy, or that’s the girl that’s the person that can make things happen. I think that’s the 1st thing they need to do is they need to.
They need to find a leader who can rally around these points that you’re bringing up.
Lawyer Norm Blumenthal:
Yeah, they. They need to get a to get some courage. And the we need that leader. We. But we don’t have. But someone’s got to step up and say, Yeah, I’m going. Step up and make this happen. And here’s what I’m for. And I’m not gonna worry about the you know, side issues. They’ll take care of themselves at the state level. You know, women in sports or men and women’s sports and the issues that should you know they they’ve made abortion legal in in most states now.
And so that’s all going to be taken care of in and of itself. So these social issues. But the bottom line is the big issues, the one the money issues. They don’t talk about.
So you know it’s my concern is, do we have a Democratic party. or is it just a bunch of people. you know, bickering amongst themselves over issues that have no bear. No wait with a guy working all you know, 40 hrs week, plus 2 jobs
and trying to get as a family by. And you know, people getting stopped on the street because of the color of their skin.
There’s things that just have to end. You know, we have to move forward. We’re never gonna solve the problem. But if you know, if you’re an illegal and you’re caught committing a crime, well, then, you’re gonna have to be deported. But to go out and and go into, you know, Dodger Stadium, or attempt to, to, you know, scare people away from from going anywhere if they’ve been here regardless of the amount of time 10 years, 20 years. But they don’t have good papers. They could be sent back to a country they never lived in.
Bert Martinez:
Right well. And again I think that people forget when Trump was in office last time. That he scared the migrant the crop pickers for lack of better terms. The farmers in California suffered severely because of that. Nobody was there to pick the crops.
Lawyer Norm Blumenthal:
Yeah, it’s a big problem with, you know, at some point in time you have to have a process to keep these workers, and they have no fear of being reported unless they committed a crime. And let them work. But if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
The system’s been working. They don’t have to become citizens as. but they they stay out of trouble, and they work hard. They should be rewarded for that.
Bert Martinez:
Right. And I do want to point out that President Trump has had numerous illegal aliens or undocumented employees working at all of his places. I think that he stopped it once. He, you know, became a politician. But there is tons of documentation that shows that, you know, just like everybody, just like everybody else. They hired people who are willing to work hard when other people weren’t willing to work those jobs.
Lawyer Norm Blumenthal:
You know, and it’s it’s not just, you know. It’s in hospitality. It’s in agriculture. It’s in, you know everything. You can’t get anything built without having day laborers. They scared them off at some home depot so that they couldn’t have it their day laborers because they’re they don’t have papers.
That simple. So we we have to turn the page on all the the issues. A border patrol, because. you know, Biden made a terrible mistake in in opening the borders, and you know now the Democrats have to pay for it. But at least let’s start a clean slate and keep the borders closed. That’s that. That’s got to be a a win for the Democrats, too. If everybody agrees on that. We’re on our, you know, halfway there without checking the people who are in front of home depot looking for day labor. We don’t need to do that.
Bert Martinez:
Absolutely norm. We’re out of time. I want to thank you so much for stopping by, and I love these bullet points you come up with, and I want to point this out. I’m not saying this just because you’re a regular guest here. But this is what
John F. Kennedy said.
Don’t ask what your country can do for you. Ask what you can do for your country.
Could you imagine what would happen to our nation if people would just sit there and say, Okay, how can I help? What ideas can I come up with? And maybe you don’t have the resources to put these ideas into action. But you have the resources to come up with the ideas and send them on to your politicians. Hey? What about this solution?
What about this solution. If we start sending solutions to our our politicians, maybe some of those would become law.
Could you imagine if somebody takes your bullet points and says, Hey, I don’t know who this Norm guy is, but I like these bullet points. Let’s see what we can do with them, and all of a sudden. They take, you know, one or 2 or 3 of them, and put them into action. This is how America stays. America.
Lawyer Norm Blumenthal:
Yup create affordable housing by changing the Federal tax law.
Bert Martinez:
Norm. Thank you so much for stopping by looking forward to have you back again.
Lawyer Norm Blumenthal:
Alright, Bert, thank you, and enjoy.
Bert Martinez:
Good stuff there from Norm Blumenthal. Norm. Blumenthal is a an attorney, and he represents working class stiffs like you and I. He’s a consumer attorney. He he deals with all sorts of consumer issues. So if you have questions about what he said tonight, you want to reach out to him. Maybe you agree, maybe disagree. Maybe you have a solution. You can reach him at bamlawca.com, thank you so much for stopping by.
Please let’s share this episode with everyone, you know. Let’s get the conversation going. Let’s get everybody thinking about what they can do. Maybe you have an idea. Maybe your friend has an idea.
But could you imagine how radically different the world would be if we came up with some positive solutions. and some of them were enacted. It doesn’t take a lot.
Remember, you were created to succeed.
