A Coupla Commies & A Nothingburger

Summary

Armstrong & Getty On Demand – "A Coupla Commies & A Nothingburger"

Episode Date: June 5, 2026
Hosts: Jack Armstrong & Joe Getty

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Episode Overview

In this episode, Jack and Joe deliver a sharp, irreverent take on the week's news and political drama—especially focusing on the latest Senate race controversy in Maine centered around Democratic candidate Graham Platner. The discussants blend personal anecdotes, pop culture jabs, and probing analysis on everything from the hardships of prepping kids for summer jobs to the "woke" policies in academia and the media’s role in political scandals. The recurring theme: skepticism about the integrity of both the political and media ecosystems, with plenty of humor and pointed commentary.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Personal Updates & The “Stupid Tax”

• Summer jobs for kids: Jack describes nudging his teenage son into the workforce by threatening to choose a job for him if he doesn’t find one himself. (02:29)
• Adult paperwork woes: Joe laments the hassle of renewing TSA PreCheck/Global Entry after letting it lapse, dubbing the extra effort "the stupid tax."
  • Quote: "Once again, stupid folks, if you’re not familiar with it, sometimes it’s time, sometimes it’s money, sometimes it’s hassle. It’s paying the stupid tax." – Joe (04:13)

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2. Clips of the Week & Political Absurdity

• Features a rapid-fire roundup of news parody, political insults, and celebrity jabs.
• Highlights the double standard in political media, contrasting the grilling of reality TV figures versus actual past associations with communists, specifically referencing LA Mayor Karen Bass’s history with Fidel Castro and Cuba.
  • Quote: "It’s ridiculous that a guy who spent his youth in reality television would want to be mayor of Los Angeles. But…if you trained as a revolutionary with Fidel Castro…Not even worth mentioning." – Jack (08:08)

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3. British Airport Drinking vs. American Culture

• Discussion about proposed bans on morning airport drinking in the UK and cultural differences in pre-flight boozing.
  • Joe learns of Britain’s tradition of getting drunk before early flights and is baffled at the cultural norm.
  • "I would feel terrible for the rest of the day—and I’m a drinking man!" – Jack (11:13)

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4. Progressive Policy Backlash in Academia

• The University of California’s math/science faculty call for reintroducing SAT/ACT tests due to academic struggles among students, challenging diversity-driven reforms.

  • Armstrong & Getty criticize the bureaucracy and paperwork required for school admissions and the declining focus on actual academic basics.
  • Quote: "So many questions—how much screen time does your kid get? …None of your effing business." – Jack (13:34)

• The hosts propose a radical solution:

  • "Bulldoze [the system] and sell the bricks. Start completely over." – Joe (15:24)

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5. Maine Senate Race, Graham Platner & The Media’s Role

Introduces the background:

• Platner’s surge as a ruggedly handsome Democratic candidate in Maine, beating out the established former governor, despite scandals involving past claims of communism, a Nazi tattoo, and more. (18:18)
• The race is especially important since control of the Senate could hinge on this seat.

Democratic Calculus & Cynicism

• Jack and Joe explain multiple conflicting motives among Democrats and Republicans on whether they want Platner to win or lose the primary, ranging from raw party loyalty to tactical gamesmanship. (25:05)
• "Virtually none of them proceeding on moral grounds." – Joe (26:27)

Media Manipulation: New York Times and "Catch and Kill"

• Suspicions that the NYT intentionally "watered down" a story on Platner’s misconduct, burying more substantial allegations deep in the article while leading with trivial complaints.
  • Quote: "It was so nothing burger...Why is this even an article, let alone with that headline?" – Jack (32:44)
  • The concept of "catch and dilute" or "vaccination article" is coined:
    • Quote: "It’s like they took the virus, killed it, then took a little bit of the virus to inoculate platinum against these charges." – Joe (34:02)

Notable Exchange on Media Sins

• Jack cites a woman quoted in the story:
  • "It dawned on me that this was really a setup all along…delayed and twisted this into a gift to the Platner campaign, violating the trust of the victims…" (31:54)

Final Take:

• Frustration at the cynical way both parties and the media treat serious allegations, with focus not on justice but electoral advantage.
• Both hosts predict more "shoes dropping" before the primary, and demand any new revelations be a "real boot," not just a "sandal or a teva." (37:00)

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6. Pop Culture & Political Satire Rapid-Fire Segment

• Jokes about Kathy Griffin, Greg Gutfeld, and headlines about President Biden’s future. (39:03)
  • Griffin/LAPD: "Every time the cops see her, they try to throw a hood over her head." – Joe (39:39)
  • Gutfeld on “Looney Tune” felon: "He plans to escape by painting a large tunnel on the wall of his cell." – Joe (40:07)

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7. The Biden Legacy & Family

• Speculation about Biden’s legacy and the real motivations behind his run, with barbed humor about his age and family’s desire for the perks of office.
  • "Knowing he was too old to run but needed to hang on to the gig because his family was broke." – Jack (41:14)
  • Obama’s "lifetime achievement award" presented to Biden was meant as a backhanded hint to retire. (42:08)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• "The first sign that somebody’s gone over to the commies is they let their membership in the TSA pre ship lapse." – Joe (04:56)
• "If there was something really big, it’s like in the first sentence…But no, it just kept going and going and going…" – Jack on NYT’s Platner piece (35:29)
• "If I meet anybody, man or woman, who doesn’t say their ex was a narcissist, it’ll be the first one." – Jack on overused modern labels (35:41)
• "He’s just a ruggedly handsome faux oysterman with bad judgment and a drinking problem." – Joe summing up Platner (36:51)
• "I want it to be a real shoe, not like a, you know, a sandal or a Teva. I need it to be a real boot. I need a boot flop." – Jack on forthcoming scandals (37:02)
• "I give you credit. Do you want me to tip my cap or do you want money?" – Jack on coining the vaccination metaphor (34:29)

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• 02:29 — Parenting, summer jobs, the "stupid tax"
• 04:11–04:56 — The pain of bureaucratic inefficiency and TSA precheck woes
• 08:08–09:00 — Dissecting the standards for political candidates (reality TV vs. communist connections)
• 09:55–11:13 — The culture of pre-flight drinking in Britain vs. the US
• 12:19–15:36 — Critique of educational paperwork/“wokeness”; the case for bulldozing public education
• 18:18–21:12 — Maine Senate race, Platner’s background, party strategies
• 25:05–26:29 — The four factions in the Maine Senate calculus, party amorality
• 27:31–34:16 — The "catch and kill" media tactic and in-depth critique of NYT's reporting
• 35:29–36:51 — Diluted allegations, over-applied labels, Platner’s weak candidacy
• 41:05–42:21 — Biden’s political legacy and the family incentive to keep running

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Tone & Style

Armstrong & Getty maintain their trademark blend of sharp-edged skepticism, improvisational asides, and dark humor, blending cultural commentary with political observation. The tone is conversational, direct, often sardonic, and very much “America-after-dark.” Both hosts unabashedly point out hypocrisy across party lines.

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Useful for New Listeners

This episode is a fast-paced, sarcastic window into the madness of 2026 American politics, filtered through the personal anecdotes and blunt wit of Jack and Joe. If you’re new to Armstrong & Getty, expect irreverent humor, a refusal to take standard media narratives at face value, and a sharp eye on how the political sausage gets made.

Transcript

[Jack Armstrong]

This is an iHeart podcast guaranteed human

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[Parent 1]

With my mom and dad living in Orange county, when we bring my five and seven year old to visit, we are sometimes in for a two hour drive that could feel like 10.

[Parent 2]

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Professional wrestling fans. The action continues every week.

[Jack Armstrong]

You got it coming. This is total non stop action.

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TNA Thursday night impact every week on AMC. For showtimes and more information, visit TNA

[Joe Getty]

wrestling.com

[Jack Armstrong]

broadcasting live from the Abraham Lincoln Radio Studio at the George Washington Broadcast Center, Jack Armstrong and Joe Getty.

[Joe Getty]

Armstrong and Getty. And now here's Armstrong and Getty.

[Jack Armstrong]

How y' all doing? You excited about the weekend? Summer weekend coming. I got one kid out of school. One kid with a couple of days left. Then they're. My oldest is gonna work this summer and I was on a website of a certain store yesterday that competes with Walmart, has a target for its logo. Signing my son up for a job because I told him you either find a job someplace you kind of want to do or I'm going to find you a job you might not like, but you're going to work. So that's the way that's going to go down. And lots opening. So we'll see. We'll see what happens. He's applied a couple other places. Still waiting to hear your back.

[Joe Getty]

That's, that's so good. That is so good. Working and getting used to the world and humanity and money and taxes and the rest of it.

[Jack Armstrong]

Oh, yeah, and doing something you don't want to do, which, and you know, you can go through a lot of your life until you start working without a whole bunch of doing stuff you don't want to do. And then you're kind of, you start a job and often you're only doing stuff you don't want to do the entire time. All day long and into the night.

[Joe Getty]

Yes, adulthood is wonderful. I've got to go to the dock in the box. Speaking of things I don't want to do. And then I've got an appointment tomorrow. I've got to drive two plus hours away to regional airport to interview for my global entry/tsa pre check thingy because I let it lapse by like two weeks.

[Jack Armstrong]

Oh, the stupid tax.

[Joe Getty]

It's precisely what it is.

[Jack Armstrong]

I pay the stupid tax almost daily on various things. So I, and I always say that to myself on my, you know, I didn't get this in in time or that in time or let that lapse or whatever.

[Joe Getty]

Okay, cool.

[Jack Armstrong]

The stupid tax.

[Joe Getty]

Once again, stupid folks, if you're not familiar with it, sometimes it's time, sometimes it's money, sometimes it's hassle. It's paying the stupid tax. But anyway, if, if you like, drop the, the feds a note in time, you know, just pay a little fee and get it. But if you let it lapse by a day, they're like, who are you?

[Jack Armstrong]

What, who are your loyalties? What are you?

[Joe Getty]

What do you think you're doing?

[Jack Armstrong]

You need to come in person. We want to look you in the

[Joe Getty]

eye and bring 15 forms of ID.

[Jack Armstrong]

So we're going to strip you naked,

[Joe Getty]

reach a hand up your rectum. We're going to figure out what you are all about. Because you waited two days to clearly,

[Jack Armstrong]

just because for years you had been somebody they trust. There's a decent chance he joined Al Qaeda. Once you let it lapse, I'll tell

[Joe Getty]

you what, the first sign that somebody's gone over to the commies is they let their membership in the TSA pre ship lapse. We've seen it over and over again. They go pink and they get late with their application, so gotta give them the once over. Oh, my God. And then of course, you gotta fill out all these forms. Ask the IRS where I live. You a holes. They know. Trust me, they know. Oh, boy. All right, so one more hour to squeeze in all the information we possibly can. Let's begin it with the beloved Friday tradition of taking a fond look back at the week that was. It's clow. It's clow. What's a clouds of the week?

[Parent 2]

We need to get all the naked

[Jack Armstrong]

drug addicts off of the sidewalks. We can't walk and chew gum at the same time in the state of LA right now. The solar panels. You spit that gum out. Spencer Pratt should not be a top two finalist for mayor.

[Joe Getty]

He should be DJing the worst new

[Jack Armstrong]

Year's Eve party in Reno right now. Are you ready? I mean, I was born for this. Clearly. Javier Becerra has surged. Javier Bacaria.

[Joe Getty]

By God, if you have Ebola, show up and vote. Whatever it takes.

[Jack Armstrong]

I know. Wear a mask.

[Joe Getty]

Trump backed former Fox News host.

[Jack Armstrong]

Republican Steve Hilton is in the lead.

[Parent 1]

The Senate race in Maine with presumptive Democratic nominee and horny Lorax Graham Platt.

[Jack Armstrong]

The Wall Street Journal New York Times ran stories without any evidence besides the gossip from a former staffer. Graham and I have a great marriage. Being married is hard. What kind of a creeper has been on a decade on a platform like kick?

[Parent 1]

Why did what happened?

[Jack Armstrong]

I don't know what happened. I mean, as I watched it, I thought, oh, my God, he's having a stroke. And so I said, you know, you answered every question.

[Parent 1]

My mind's racing.

[Jack Armstrong]

You know, that's a pretty low bar. More turmoil at CBS News. Journalism is under attack in America.

[Joe Getty]

Trump told Netanyahu he was effing crazy. Everybody hates you now.

[Jack Armstrong]

He's a little bit perturbed at his constantly fighting with Lebanon.

[Joe Getty]

Nobody is interested in the ramblings of a capo.

[Jack Armstrong]

Her son and Jeffrey Epstein talk about pole dancing as he begged him for money. Using your limited credibility. Reclaiming my time, asking to shut up.

[Joe Getty]

That's a pretty.

[Jack Armstrong]

Shut up. We're talking about shoes. Are you guys kidding me? I mean, is this the Foreign Affairs

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Committee or is this like a circus? What is this?

[Jack Armstrong]

It's simple as a pimple for me. There's nothing to it. It'd be nice if it was caught humanely and taken away. And obviously it's domesticated. Bird. It was very shocking and we asked

[Joe Getty]

it out of the box.

[Commercial Announcer 1]

What Kink king can be a fascinating topic. There are many different styles that people enjoy.

[Jack Armstrong]

It's clips of the week. So obviously it's ridiculous that a guy who spent his youth in reality television would want to be mayor of Los Angeles. But if you're Karen Bass and it commented on by late night talk show hosts like Jimmy Kimmel. But if you're Karen Bass and you trained as a revolutionary with Fidel Castro when you were young. Not even worth mentioning.

[Joe Getty]

Right.

[Jack Armstrong]

She visited Cuba eight times in the 70s. That's long after Fidel Castro was not just a person who cared about the downtrodden. He was full on communist dictator by then. She traveled to Cuba eight times talking about what a great charismatic speaker he was. Blah blah blah. Talked about what a loss it was when he died. That's as recently as 2016 when she called Castro's death a great loss for the world.

[Joe Getty]

That's right. I'd forgotten that we went big on that at the time. Yeah. So she's a. An openly would be communist government hack. And that's much, much more respectable than a guy who happened to be on a reality show than open a business couple reality shows. Which is not that respectable line of work. I admit that. No, no, come on though. Come on. Would you rather have the TV guy or a communist?

[Jack Armstrong]

Please.

[Joe Getty]

God. The rush to the far left in American politics right now joined by the Islamists is really, really troubling to me.

[Jack Armstrong]

And you mentioned. Was it last hour you're talking about the. Or is that this hour? This was just a few minutes ago. I can hide my own Easter eggs. I really really can. And like a dog.

[Joe Getty]

No concept of time.

[Jack Armstrong]

Oh, thank God you're back.

[Joe Getty]

I just took out the garbage.

[Jack Armstrong]

I am a lot like that. You're talking about the whole pre check or what?

[Joe Getty]

Oh yeah, yeah.

[Jack Armstrong]

I saw this in the Wall Street Journal. I don't know anything about this. The grand British tradition of getting sloshed before takeoff is under threat. A proposal by a CEO to stop or limit morning airport alcohol sales. Is. Is there more of a grand tradition of getting drunk before you fly in Britain than there is in the United States?

[Joe Getty]

I was totally unaware until I came across that same piece of journalism where they explained that. Oh yeah, yeah. It's kind of just a thing. In Britain you get drunk before you get on a plane. Even if it's a 7:30 in the morning flight.

[Jack Armstrong]

Huh. What an interesting cultural difference. Yeah, it's not like we're a non drinking country.

[Joe Getty]

I drink at airports, but I'd never heard. Well, of course you get drunk before you get on a plane. In my entire life. Like, it's obligatory or a tradition back when I drank.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yeah. A flight in the afternoon or evening, sure, you're killing time. The airport bar is awesome. But on a morning flight, the grand tradition of getting sloshed before a morning flight. I mean, you don't. You don't teach their own.

[Joe Getty]

But they talk about all sorts of horrible day.

[Jack Armstrong]

Well, that's what I was gonna say. They.

[Joe Getty]

They talk to people going to all sorts of different destinations and vacations or soccer matches or business or whatever. I'm like, yeah, I would feel terrible for the rest of the day.

[Jack Armstrong]

And I'm a drinking man.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah, I hate that idea. Okay, well, I guess the. There's a skyrocketing rate of unruly incidents aboard the airplanes, which is why the head of Ryanair is saying, we got to do something about this. This is insane. It's interesting, though, that it's coincided with, you know, the trend toward progressive lawlessness and tearing down the system and white supremacy and blah, blah, blah. It's all tied together. They're trying to break the system.

[Jack Armstrong]

Well, and as always, which has made me mad Since I was 5 years old, you've got to eliminate something that 99% of people are doing and causing nobody else any trouble whatsoever. But you're. You got to attack the whole idea of it because some people are a holes. How about you put the a holes in jail or penalize them to the point that they don't. They don't act out they're a holishness anymore and leave everybody else alone, which is what I would prefer.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah. And keep going to your destination. They got cops at the end of the line, too. You don't need to go back to London or wherever. Go wherever the hell you're going and arrest them there.

[Jack Armstrong]

Looking over some of my notes, see what I think is interesting as we get to the waning moments of the show. We talked a lot about the other day. The. In California. And I'm sure this is true around America. If they've done anywhere else but the STEM faculty for the University of California, which is often called the greatest university system on planet Earth. I know that you. I don't know if that's true anymore. I don't. But they've all taken such a hit. But anyway, the STEM faculty across the University of California system. Open letter to UC regents in which they said, you got to bring back the SAT ACT scores We're getting all kinds of people coming in that just cannot hack it in terms of trying to be an engineer or biologist or whatever the heck that is. Amazing, isn't it?

[Joe Getty]

What's even more amazing is what. When that was proposed, eliminating the SAT and just, you know, going with interviews about what race you are and that sort of thing, the faculty advisory committee unanimously said, don't do that. But the woke regents, I mean, as woke as the faculty are, the woke regents said, no, we're doing this.

[Jack Armstrong]

So one of the reasons I brought that up is filling out a whole bunch of a ridiculous amount of paperwork for getting into a certain segment of public school for one of my kids. The amount of paperwork, like I said the other day, I'd like a time machine just to see what my mom had to fill out to get, you know, me into my junior year of high school. Anything. I'm not sure she had to fill out anything, but if it was, it wasn't much Anyhow. So. So many of the questions, how much screen time does you get? And I, I answered a few but then eventually got to the. I'm not answering in any of these. One, out of. I'm just exhausted by it. And two, none of your effing business. But all kinds of questions about just like everything you could possibly imagine about someone's life to a role in school. Why, what and what are you doing with this information?

[Joe Getty]

It's part of the whole culture of the narcissism of small distinctions, I think too, where every kid gets a carve out for this or.

[Jack Armstrong]

But there are questions like does your, does your, does your student have any friends that have ever undergone a tragedy? Or just all kinds of weird. And like, what. I'm not, I'm not wasting my time on this. Even if I could come up with answers because what are you gonna do with it? That's gonna be. And always the punchline to any story pretty much anywhere in America but Mississippi. When you're talking about school stuff is at the end of the day, hardly anybody is passing the whole reading and writing part of school, which is the reason you're there. But you're asking all of these questions about crap that doesn't matter. How in the world do we fix this problem? As you always say, K through graduate school is broken in this country.

[Joe Getty]

Bulldoze it and sell the bricks.

[Jack Armstrong]

Bulldoze and sell the bricks. Start completely over. That'd be awesome. Start completely over. Build from the ground up. You would end up with a very different looking system.

[Joe Getty]

We're going to have a couple of rebuilding years like we're the New York jets or something like that. Bad example because they'll never be any good. But yeah, we've got to have some rebuilding years because it's just become so terrible we can't use what we've got. We're going to clean house.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yeah.

[Joe Getty]

Anyway, it clearly needs to happen.

[Jack Armstrong]

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[Jack Armstrong]

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[Parent 1]

No idea. Last week it was Dinosaurs.

[Jack Armstrong]

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[Jack Armstrong]

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[Parent 1]

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[Jack Armstrong]

Download it for free. What's your response to this New York Times article on Graham Platner? Do you think he deserves to continue to be the main Senate nominee? Isn't this a liability for Democrats trying to take back the majority? So that was a reporter trying to get Bernie Sanders to comment on this guy that's running as a Democrat in Maine. We'll talk more about that in just a second. Well, he's a progressive.

[Joe Getty]

I don't care if he's Hitler, which

[Jack Armstrong]

seems to be some people's attitude. So who, who controls the Senate is a really big deal. Getting judges through, how impeachment will be handled, whether or not, you know, you're in control of the process or not, all kinds of different stuff. It's, it's, it's a major deal. Who controls the Senate and it's practically tied. And so the Democrats thought they could pick up a seat there in Maine because a very moderate Republican who voted against Trump in the impeachment over January 6th, Susan Collins is up, her time is up and so she's gonna run against somebody. Well, you'd had the governor, the former governor of Maine, Janet Mills was gonna run, but then out of nowhere came this, this Platin dude who is doing the whole I'm regular working class guy, it's time to drain the swamp and get rid of the politicians thing. That becomes very much of his whole

[Joe Getty]

deal is the fact that he's ruggedly handsome.

[Jack Armstrong]

As much a deal as the fact that AOC is hot is her deal. Yes, a lot. Most the driving force wouldn't have happened without it.

[Joe Getty]

Laughable.

[Jack Armstrong]

He does have the rugged good looks thing going and can talk the talk. And it turns out he went to a super fancy boarding school and his actual history is a little bit different than his. The way he dresses and talks.

[Joe Getty]

His rich, rich dad essentially bought him a house, gave him $200,000 for the house.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yeah, I mean, come on.

[Joe Getty]

I'm not as comfortable working class oysterman.

[Jack Armstrong]

Eh, I'm not as comfortable as beating up on a guy for that as I was pre Pennsylvania and, and finding out that his name escapes me because I'm old and I have dementia.

[Joe Getty]

John Fetterman.

[Jack Armstrong]

John Fetterman. You know, we beat him up for being a socialist layabout and he turned out to be my favorite Democratic senator of all after a stroke weirdly enough. Anyway, so there's a bunch of people that are still supporting this to the Platner dude. Oh I want to get this on down the we're down to the list. We're to no time. Okay. We're gonna have to do it. When we come back. He was on with Chris Hayes on MSNBC and and they had an interesting run and we'll talk about But I used to think Ronna Democrat of California was kind of like reasonable. Ish.

[Joe Getty]

No, he's insane.

[Jack Armstrong]

He is gonna be in Maine tonight. Even after all the stuff that's happened this week around Platner and his background with the women and the Nazi tattoo and the once saying he was a communist and everything else. Ro Khanna California is going to be there tonight for a get out of the vote. They vote on Tuesday. They vote on Tuesday. But anyway, we got a good clip from msnbc. We'll play for you and fill in some more of the details. If you don't know it, it's a heck of an interesting drama. Armstrong and Getty

[Commercial Announcer 1]

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[Commercial Announcer 2]

flowers fade, cards get tossed, but a personalized song that lasts forever? Surprise someone you love with a custom song made just for them with Joybox. Visit Joybox Studio to get started on your personalized song today. Don't just say I love you. Sing it with Joybox.

[Parent 1]

With my mom and dad living in Orange county, when we bring my five and seven year old to visit, we are sometimes in for a two hour drive that could feel like 10.

[Parent 2]

Oh, as an avid camper, I know all about this. We'll pack up the RV and know this is either going to be the trip of a lifetime or a complete a complete disaster.

[Parent 1]

Which is why we load up the iPads with Lingokids before we even pull out of the driveway.

[Parent 2]

It's what dreams are made of. Lingokids keeps kids engaged and quiet with over 4, 000 interactive games, songs and shows that kids simply cannot get enough of.

[Parent 1]

You can pack whatever you think you'll need, but Lingokids is the only entertainment you'll need for a stress free car

[Parent 2]

ride or really any ride, plane, train, hovercraft, whatever.

[Parent 1]

Download Lingokids for free today or unlock

[Parent 2]

even more amazing content with LingoKids.

[Parent 1]

Plus choose the yearly plan and save up to 60%. Search LingoKids in the app store or

[Parent 2]

Google Play Lingokids everything Kids love professional wrestling fans.

[Wrestling Announcer]

The action continues every week. Watch CNA Thursday Night Impact every week on amc.

[Jack Armstrong]

It is like electricity blowing through your veins.

[Wrestling Announcer]

Miss the adrenaline, the drama and the total non stop action.

[Jack Armstrong]

No one can ever be as good as this right here.

[Wrestling Announcer]

Don't miss the action of TNA Thursday Night Impact every week on AMC. For showtimes and more information visit tnarrestling.com

[Jack Armstrong]

this is so complicated. You know, even those of us who like spend too much of our lives reading about politics and talking about politics don't fully understand the level of fighting, cleverness, strategy, everything that goes on. Because there's so much money at stake. There's so much money at stake. The trillions of dollars that passed through Washington D.C. there's just so much at stake and talking about who's going to control the Senate, which has a lot to do with who's going to get trillions of dollars of pass through Washington D.C. and is it going to be the Republicans or the Democrats? And so it might come down to asset and that's why people are making such a big deal out of this Graham Plantner dude who's running as a Democrat there in Maine.

[Joe Getty]

You know what I have not heard until today that Maine is the only state Kamala Harris won that's up for has a senator up for election this time. And that's why it's such a target. Because if they don't win Maine they'd have to win like an Iowa or Texas which are much redder to accomplish the same thing.

[Jack Armstrong]

But you've got then you've got the complications of it. So this Platner guy, assume you listen to us, you follow enough politics. You know he's got a Nazi tattoo and I mean he's a young guy, called himself a communist once and he just there's all kinds of stuff around him.

[Joe Getty]

I'm sorry it's the only state with a Republican senator up for election. Anyway, back to you.

[Jack Armstrong]

But then, but then you've got the twist a roo of so there are Democrats, some Democrats who are overlooking a lot of bad behavior by this dude because they're in the the guy sucks. I hate him. I wish he wasn't our guy. But us controlling the Senate is a big deal. So let's stay on board. Let's get him across the line and, and have him win the seat. Then you got some Democrats who are not on board because they actually, you know, are decent human beings and don't want them representing party or, or they're not decent human beings, but they think he's going to lose. We need to get somebody else in there. We need to drive him out of the race to get a different Democrat in there and then boost that Democrat so that we can win. It's the Biden dynamic. Then you got the Republicans who are beating up on Platinum like, I can't believe this guy is going to be a Democratic senator because they're afraid he might beat Collins. And then other Republicans who are keeping their mouths shut because they want him to be the nominee because they think he's so easily beaten. So there's like four different groups there in two parties and virtually none of

[Joe Getty]

them proceeding on moral grounds.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yeah, very few. And then did the New York. I think so. I'm a yes vote on this. Did the New York Times do a catch and kill story yesterday to try to protect Platner because they're hoping he ends up the nominee because they think that he can beat Susan Collins? I think they did. So we'll get to that in a little bit. But first on the. I talked earlier in the week. I was bothered that over this past weekend, the story erupted of his sexting scandal. And that seemed to be like, well, this is too much. When he survived the being a Nazi, he survives being a communist, he survives all this other. That's okay. But man, he sexted some women, so I can't put up with that. That's the thing that we're going to lean on. Anyway, he was on msnbc, the Chris Hayes show, and was asked about when he stopped sexting because he's married and all this sort of stuff. But this is 2023. And so there's a, there's a difference in the time. And I think the first question is, like, when did this stop? If it stopped?

[Joe Getty]

If there was stuff that you're not proud of, that you worked out with

[Jack Armstrong]

your wife, you don't want to talk about the details. When did it stop? Oh, but it stopped when it was happening. I mean, like, it was a. Amy and I. Amy and I. It happened soon after we got married and we dealt with it very, very early in our relationship. And so that's. That's when it stopped. Now, from just a soap opera standpoint, you Know, if you just want to talk about relationships, which is fun to do, that's a heck of a thing. You were sexton chicks right after you got married. That's, you know. Well, you know, I had the seven day itch or the seven month day doldrums or whatever.

[Joe Getty]

A cabal of women. Quite a few.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Right after you got married. That's, that's a hack of thing. But they worked it out and she seems to love him and be happy with him and whatever. And I think there's all kinds of reasons he shouldn't be a U.S. senator. So I don't know why we even need to get down to the sexting on the list to try to nail that down. But. So do you know what a catch and kill thing is? Trump was good at that. Lots of, lots of people have been good at that. Because he had friends at the. Who was it? The Inquirer?

[Joe Getty]

National Enquirer.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yeah. So he'd have the Enquirer. This is back before he was even a politician, when he was just a celebrity billionaire dude that people knew his name. If there was a negative story out there, sometimes he'd have the National Enquirer pay somebody for the story, exclusive story, and then just never print it. Or sometimes the catch and kill version is you print it, but you do a really watered down version. And that's what the New York Times. The New York Times is being accused of right now. Cause so the New York Times had a splashy headline yesterday that I actually clicked on. I don't know if you have the actual headline, but it was something like, three women finally come forward to nail down what a scumbag Plantner is. And I thought, okay, here we go. Now, after last week's sexting story, because the Wall Street Journal. It wasn't the Wall Street Journal. Wasn't it that. That had the headline platner sexting after marriage. And then there were no sex in there. They didn't have any of the sex. I wanted the actual sexting. I didn't just want like illusions to it. I wanted to see the actual sex. They didn't have any. New York Times goes with this splashy headline. Okay, here we go. Here's the details.

[Joe Getty]

Here it is. Several women who dated Graham Platner recall unsettling behavior.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yeah. So, okay, I thought, okay, do they have the goods Now I read paragraph after paragraph after paragraph. Before they even got to the women. I was like, okay, why have I. Why is the first paragraph not he raped me or something? Like that you keep going and going and going and going. And then when they finally got to the women, it was, I found out he was dating someone else the same time he was dating me. Whoa. That's your lead acquisition accusation in the New York Times story. He was dating somebody else at the same time. Okay, not cool, but hardly a bombshell revelation that keeps somebody from being a U.S. senator. And it kept going like that. And then finally you got down to a woman who said, he shoved me in a room and locked the door. Okay, that's worse than. But why? Why did you structure it this way? And so now there's accusations that there was a catch and kill going on. David Harsanyi reposting this. It's starting to look like people at the New York Times lured in Graham Platner's victims to try to bury the story for him. Publishing something watered down due to apparent infighting at the New York Times or the Democratic Party on whether they actually think their best bet is to get rid of him before the primary Tuesday or to have him win and beat Collins anyway in a way that would leave just enough grist for bad actors to prepare, portray Platner as a victim of a right wing witch hunt. Now you're getting too many switcheroos for me to even follow. So you put out a watered down he's a bad guy so that he and other Democrats can claim, look, they're out to get me in the New York Times.

[Joe Getty]

Well, and voters in the future will see headlines about him being a bad guy in that way and think, oh, my God, there's nothing to it. I've seen this.

[Jack Armstrong]

Well, I had to read a long way down before you got this, any of this. And then you're even at a he said, she said. Why did they bury it so far anyway? So one of the women says, it dawned on me that this was a. One of the women in the. That that was a featured said. It dawned on me that this was really a setup all along. The journalists I trusted who convinced me to share a story I never wanted to tell methodically delayed and twisted this into a gift to the Platner campaign, violating the trust of the victims, shattering the trust I placed in them with the most vulnerable story of my life. So that suggests they said more damning things. But the New York Times didn't print them. Wow. And they put out the story so they can say, look, we've covered this. This is an old story. It's been covered in the New York Times. How many times Are we gonna keep talking about this when there was just. It was so nothing burger? I was shocked at, like, why is this even an article, let alone with that headline?

[Joe Getty]

There is physical abuse in this article. I'm going to count how many paragraphs in it is. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21,

[Jack Armstrong]

22, 23, 24, 24 paragraphs before they get to get anything that you could call, okay, that's really bad behavior that I never want somebody to be a U.S. senator. And then you're still at it. It's a he said, she said. So why all the previous paragraphs of I found out he was dating someone or else or he told me he loved me and it turned out he didn't. I mean, what was all that?

[Joe Getty]

Yeah, yeah, he drank a lot. Yeah, right?

[Jack Armstrong]

Yeah.

[Joe Getty]

That's so interesting. It's obviously not catch and kill. There's got to be catch and dilute.

[Jack Armstrong]

Right? Right. I think that's what it was. Catching dilute. So this woman, I don't know which of these women it is, is basically, it sounds to me like she's saying, they convinced me to tell this story because we got to get this guy so bad and then did this big, long, watered down story that has no impact.

[Joe Getty]

Boy, if you're a fan of metaphors, it's like they took the virus, killed it, then took a little bit of the virus to inoculate platinum against these charges.

[Jack Armstrong]

That's exactly what it is.

[Joe Getty]

It's a. It's. What's the other word for inoculation? It's one of them. God dang it. That thing, that other word for inoculation is what?

[Jack Armstrong]

This is vaccine.

[Joe Getty]

It's a vaccination.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yeah, that's exactly what it is. And that has been perfected over many, many years of politics. Clinton people were really good.

[Joe Getty]

I coined that. It's a vaccination article.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yeah. I want credit.

[Joe Getty]

Does it pay?

[Jack Armstrong]

I give you credit. Do you want me to tip my cap or do you want money?

[Joe Getty]

Did you say partial credit or full?

[Jack Armstrong]

Should I send you a check? What do you want for what will satisfy your needs?

[Joe Getty]

Here, A T shirt that says, I came up with this? I don't know.

[Jack Armstrong]

All I know is when I saw the headline yesterday, I thought, oh, this is gonna be interesting. And I just kept reading and reading and reading and nothing interesting happened.

[Joe Getty]

Did I space off or miss the good part?

[Jack Armstrong]

Right.

[Joe Getty]

Because I'm kind of watching the ball game out of the corner of My eye.

[Jack Armstrong]

And then it became obvious to me, okay, this is on purpose, or they would have put it in the first paragraph. If you. We all know if you follow news at all, if there's something really big, it's like in the first sentence, yeah, you have a quote from a woman. He held me down and raped me, or whatever it is. But no, it just kept going and going and going with sidebars about his life and other things and perhaps meaningless convert before they even got to a woman claiming he said he loved me. And I don't think he actually did. Like, what?

[Joe Getty]

Yeah, in Fairness, in paragraph 6, they do refer to, in at least one case, even physically threatening. But then they don't pay that off until paragraph 24, as we made clear earlier.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yeah, a lot of narcissists talk. Let me just tell you, having been in the dating world now for a while, if I meet anybody, man or woman, who doesn't say their ex was a narcissist, it'll be the first one. It's so commonly used. Maybe they are, but. But everybody says their ex was a narcissist. I don't mean most people or three quarters. I mean, 100% of people say, yeah, I was married to a narcissist. Okay, well, maybe you were. I don't know. But sure seems like a lot of people ended up married to narcissists. Can't all be true. Get it?

[Joe Getty]

Yeah. Yeah, that's funny. I've heard that more than once, too. You know, I have sympathy for the guy who was left damaged somewhat psychologically by his combat experiences, and I would never harshly judge anybody for that. But he's referred a good deal to his bad judgment and heavy drinking. And people get. People reform. But he's still a pretty young man. That was not that long ago. And he's established no track record of really achieving anything. So he's just a ruggedly handsome faux oysterman with bad judgment and a drinking problem.

[Jack Armstrong]

Now, Mark Halperin keeps saying there are other shoes to drop. When are they gonna drop? This weekend? Because they vote Tuesday and almost have to be this weekend.

[Joe Getty]

Get to dropping them shoes.

[Jack Armstrong]

And I want it to be a real shoe, not like a, you know, a sandal or a teva or something. I need to be a real boot. I need a boot flop.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah, a wing tip. Something that thumps.

[Jack Armstrong]

We'll finish strong next Armstrong. And get.

[Commercial Announcer 1]

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[Parent 1]

With my mom and dad living in Orange county, when we bring my five and seven year old to visit, we are sometimes in for a two hour drive that could feel like 10.

[Parent 2]

Oh, as an avid camper, I know all about this. We'll pack up the RV and know this is either going to be the trip of a lifetime or a complete disaster.

[Parent 1]

Which is why we load up the iPads with Lingokids before we even pull out of the driveway.

[Parent 2]

It's what dreams are made of. Lingokids keeps kids engaged and quiet with over 4000 interactive games, songs and shows that kids simply cannot get enough of.

[Parent 1]

You can pack whatever you think you'll need, but Lingokids is the only entertainment you'll need for a stress free car ride.

[Parent 2]

Or really any ride, plane, train, hovercraft, whatever.

[Parent 1]

Download Lingokids for free today or unlock

[Parent 2]

even more amazing content with LingoKids.

[Parent 1]

Plus choose the yearly plan and save up to 60%. Search LingoKids in the App Store or

[Parent 2]

Google Play Lingokids Everything kids love.

[Wrestling Announcer]

Professional wrestling fans. The action continues every week. Watch CNA Thursday Night Impact every week on amc.

[Jack Armstrong]

Save it is like electricity blowing through your veins.

[Wrestling Announcer]

Don't miss the adrenaline, the drama and the total non stop action.

[Jack Armstrong]

No one can ever be as good as this right here.

[Wrestling Announcer]

Don't miss the action of TNA Thursday Night Impact every week on AMC. For showtimes and more information, visit tna

[Joe Getty]

wrestling.com so on a recent podcast with LA Mayor Bass, comedian Kathy Griffin insulted the LAPD by accusing them of being part of white nationalism. She says that's because every time the cops see her, they try to throw a hood over her head.

[Jack Armstrong]

Wow. Did he have a picture? She looks pretty freaky now.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah, yeah.

[Jack Armstrong]

Much work.

[Joe Getty]

Stop.

[Jack Armstrong]

No kidding. We haven't heard eight either. This is Greg Gutfeld again. A man legally named Looney Tune was

[Joe Getty]

sentenced to 20 years in prison for multiple felonies. Needless to say, he plans to escape by painting a large tunnel on the wall of his cell.

[Jack Armstrong]

I like that, but I wanted to get this on again.

[Joe Getty]

7 On the View, Dr. Jill asserted that Joe would have beaten Trump in 2024. Not to the White House, to the white lights.

[Jack Armstrong]

Wow.

[Joe Getty]

Oh, boy.

[Jack Armstrong]

That's funny.

[Joe Getty]

That's what he was going for. Yeah.

[Jack Armstrong]

When Biden finally kicks off, which could be three this afternoon, what is that going to be like? How is that going to be handled?

[Joe Getty]

Oh, by. Well, it depends who you're talking about. But do you all the Democrats, 50 years of public service, blah, blah, blah,

[Jack Armstrong]

Clinton, Obama show up and talk about this and that and everything like that?

[Joe Getty]

Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. The pleasantries, the, the, they'll do the nice, nice thing.

[Jack Armstrong]

And then finally, in the most selfish act in presidential history, knowing he was too old to run but needed to hang on to the gig because his family was broke, he allowed Donald Trump to get elected again. From their standpoint, doesn't bother me.

[Joe Getty]

They probably won't phrase it exactly. Joe Biden, who is so committed to serving the country, even as some question throw his age and acuity, he insisted that he wanted to serve four more years.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yeah. Which is a heck of a thing. You know, Obama, if he was going to be honest, I wish he would. He gave Biden that Presidential Medal of Freedom honor to keep him from running for president. The idea was I'm going to give him a biggest high honor. Here's your, here's your award. Everybody's clapping and looking you the highest peak and that was a good run. So enjoy the beat.

[Joe Getty]

This is your lifetime achievement awards. Stop trying to achieve anything.

[Jack Armstrong]

Exactly. That's what I meant. I'm giving you the lifetime achievement awards, which means you've achieved everything you can and need to. So then head into the sunset.

[Joe Getty]

Right, Please.

[Jack Armstrong]

But he ran any Iran anyway.

[Joe Getty]

There are sources now, anonymous of course from the Biden camp that are, they're telling journalists, look, Jill loved the trappings of power. She loved being the first lady and the wealth that accrued to the family and the rest of it. And she was absolutely one of the main engines of yes, you've got to run again.

[Jack Armstrong]

There is a couple of different pundits that I've listened to recently, like straight shooter pundits who said the whole Biden thing that they pulled it off as long as they did of look, I'm the honest guy. My word is a Biden. I'm the that they pulled that off in D.C. for so long. So long that people bought into it and they are just a. We're Here to get rich. We do whatever benefits us just like everybody else practically in D.C. but they had that, that shiny veneer for a long time, that brand.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah. I have some final thoughts. And some people say they are the

[Jack Armstrong]

greatest final thoughts they've ever heard.

[Joe Getty]

But if you look at what's happening, I would have to say Armstrong and,

[Jack Armstrong]

and Getty have some wonderful final thoughts.

[Joe Getty]

They are right up there with Abraham Lincoln and everybody knows it.

[Jack Armstrong]

You know, that's funny, but it's that technology can, that can have your kid call you and say, look, dad, I'm in jail. You got to send me 500 because

[Joe Getty]

it's so way better now than it was when that was done.

[Jack Armstrong]

Here's your host for final thoughts, Joe Getty.

[Joe Getty]

Let's get a final thought from everybody on the crew to wrap up the show for the day. Boy, we're cut. We're cut down. We got a skeleton crew. Hanson, press of the buttons in the control room.

[Jack Armstrong]

Mike, lead us off. I, you know, I've been thinking a lot about the fact that I need to work out, but then listening to the show Today, I'm going 180. I'm going full Lizzo, hamburgers, milkshakes, pie, Jack's favorite pie. I'm just going for it for the next month. I don't care because I'll just get the injection and lose it all in a matter of months anyway. So I'm going for it. Yeah. My final thought, I, I don't know that much about that. So if I went on that thing, could I just start eating pie and donuts if I want to?

[Joe Getty]

You won't have any desire to.

[Jack Armstrong]

I'd like to put that to the test. Armstrong and Getty wrapping up another grueling four hour workday.

[Joe Getty]

So many people who thanked so many people with Nazi tattoos. Hey, go To Armstrong and getty.com for the hot links. Pick up some Angie swag.

[Jack Armstrong]

Drop us a note.

[Joe Getty]

Mailbagarmstrongandgetti.com Lots of news will happen about

[Jack Armstrong]

over the weekend and we'll watch it so you don't have to.

[Joe Getty]

We'll see Armstrong and Getty.

[Jack Armstrong]

There's a fantastic podcast that you gotta

[Joe Getty]

listen to every day. It's got Jack and Joe, Katie and Michelangelo. It's called Armstrong and Giddy on Demand. Subscribe now wherever you download your podcast. Armstrong and Getty Underneath Armstrong and getty

[Commercial Announcer 1]

this July 4th. Come celebrate at America's Block Party hosted by America 250. America's Block Party is a can't miss 4th of July concert happening at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Experience music, performances from major artists, patriotic tributes, and the kickoff to Giving forth, helping to make July 4th the largest day of giving in American history. It's more than just fireworks. Learn more about this landmark celebration at america250.org

[Commercial Announcer 2]

flowers fade, cards get tossed. But a personalized song that lasts forever. Surprise someone you love with a custom song made just for them with Joybox. Visit Joybox Studio to get started on your personalized song today. Don't just say I love you. Sing it with Joybox.

[Jack Armstrong]

Mom, can I have Lingokids? Dad? Lingokids, please. When did we become the Lingokids house?

[Parent 1]

No idea. Last week it was dinosaurs.

[Jack Armstrong]

This week it was Lingokids. Why Lingokids? Because it's the best thing ever. We can play games with astronauts, wild animals and superheroes.

[Commercial Announcer 1]

With more than 4,000 interactive games, songs and shows, LingoKids is the number one

[Jack Armstrong]

entertainment platform for young kids.

[Parent 1]

So no dinosaurs.

[Jack Armstrong]

And dinosaurs. Mango kids. Everything kids love. Download it for free.

[Wrestling Announcer]

Professional wrestling fans. The action continues every week.

[Jack Armstrong]

This is total nonstop action.

[Wrestling Announcer]

TNA Thursday night Impact every week on amc. For showtimes and more information, visit tnarestling.

[Joe Getty]

Com.