Kyle Kulinski of Secular Talk podcast recently weighed in on Joe Rogan’s appearance at the White House, where the popular podcaster attended a signing ceremony for an executive order by President Donald Trump loosening regulations around certain psychedelic d**gs shown to have promise in easing mental illness.
Kulinski opened his commentary by citing The Tennessee Holler, which flagged the visit on Twitter. Referencing the post, Kulinski read aloud the remark: “After pretending to be horrified by Trump’s policies, Rogan is in the Oval Office standing up to Trump.”
According to Kulinski, Rogan’s presence at the event stemmed from a story the podcaster shared about texting Trump articles on Ibogaine and its potential for treating mental illness. Kulinski recounted Trump’s reported response to Rogan’s outreach, quoting him as saying, “Really good? Well, you want some FDA approval? Let me give you some FDA approval.”
Kulinski argued that the exchange was apparently enough to bring Rogan into the Oval Office to celebrate the signing.
Kulinski did not hold back on his view of the optics surrounding the visit. While expressing support for the policy itself, he criticized the timing and optics of Rogan’s attendance.
“Do I support the policy of loosening the primitive regulations around psychedelic dr**s? Of course I do. But, hey, man, time and a place. You also could have said, oh, sorry, I can’t make it that day,” he said.
The timing of the visit drew particular scrutiny from Kulinski, who pointed out that Trump’s approval ratings have been trending downward across multiple polls, with averages sitting in the high 30s.
Taking a jab at the optics, Kulinski added, “Great time to snuggle up, Joe Rogan.”
Kulinski also referenced a recent episode of Rogan’s podcast in which guest Duncan Trussell reflected on feeling misled by political promises. Recalling the moment, Kulinski quoted Trussell as saying: “I fell for it. The no new war stick. I thought it was real. Turns out it was fake. I’ve been had. I’ve been took. I’ve been bamboozled. I was a sucker. I fell for a whole bunch of cults. This is like a new cult that I fell for.”
Kulinski noted that Rogan nodded along to those remarks while, in his view, still remaining aligned with Trump.
As for whether Rogan might eventually distance himself from the president entirely, Kulinski said he remained doubtful. “Rogan will never fully break with Trump for the simple reason that he’s in the friend group,” he said, pointing to a circle that includes Dana White, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., JD Vance, and Elon Musk.
Emphasizing the closeness of that circle, Kulinski added, “They text with each other. They talk on the phone. They giggle, right? He’s in the club. And so now he’s never going to burn that bridge.”
