Bonds & Handwriting

Summary

Armstrong & Getty On Demand

Episode: Bonds & Handwriting
Date: September 10, 2025

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Overview

In this episode, Jack Armstrong and Joe Getty tackle some of the most pressing issues facing America, including the complexities of drug interdiction, the ongoing crisis in public education, issues with bail reform and public safety, and cultural blind spots around homelessness and crime. The hosts dig deep into the realities behind news headlines, challenge media narratives, and bring in expert voices—like longtime bail agent Topo Padilla—to enrich the conversation. Their tone is candid, irreverent, and deeply concerned with the direction of American society.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

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1. America’s Approach to Drug Interdiction

(01:16 - 03:16)

• Narco Boats and U.S. Policy: The show opens with a report about a U.S. Coast Guard operation, where a narco boat was seized and drug smugglers apprehended. The hosts reflect on whether America’s approach—sometimes lethal, sometimes simple interdiction—is coherent or ethical.
  • Jack Armstrong references Senator Rand Paul's critique:
    "Are we just going to kill all drug dealers anywhere in the world that are sending drugs anywhere? ... How do we figure this out?" (01:16)
  • Joe Getty points out the nuance:
    "It's not as nearly as simple as a lot of people are portraying it... these guys in the boats are either like the lowest level guys or fishermen." (02:28)

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2. The Decline of Public Education and Misplaced Blame

(03:16 - 07:52, 10:16 - 14:23)

• National Report Card & Trends: The latest education report card shows U.S. schools are continuing to decline, an issue the hosts argue is decades in the making—long before COVID or recent federal staffing changes.
  • Ben Ferguson dismisses trendy explanations:
    "Covid didn't help, but it's not the cause by any means whatsoever." (03:47)
  • Joe Getty on the limits of federal solutions:
    "The idea that your child learns to read and write because of the federal Department of Education is hilarious." (04:00)
• Phones in Classrooms: Hosts are alarmed by the prevalence of cellphones during class and question the impact on learning.
  • Ben Ferguson incredulous:
    "The whole classroom, people are just sitting there looking at their phones... Of course you're not learning." (04:20)
• Systemic Failures According to Teachers:
  • Email from a 20-year veteran teacher highlights issues: union power, lack of student retention, kids entering kindergarten without basic skills due to excessive screen time instead of hands-on activities.
  • Joe Getty explains brain science:
    "Handwriting is an incredible stimulator of your brain, connecting the mechanical with the cerebral… there's practically no substitute for it." (07:31)
• Advancement Without Merit:
  • The shift from holding students back ("flunking") to automatic promotion is seen as disastrous.
  • Ben Ferguson critiques the self-esteem strategy:
    "You're not going to help their self esteem by sending them out into the world where they can't read or do math and they can't work a job. That's pretty hard on your self esteem too." (06:34)
• Socioeconomic Gaps and Advanced Early Ed:
  • Jack Armstrong wonders where the drop-off occurs:
    "Kindergarten, first grade is so much more advanced than it was when I was a kid. Where does the drop off occur?" (11:27)
  • Joe Getty on blue vs. red states and smartphone policy:
    "It's a majority of states now have banned smartphones in classrooms, but whether it's enforced or not... certainly blue county to red county, there's probably a difference." (05:18)

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3. Bail Reform, Public Safety, and Expert Guest: Topo Padilla

(23:25 - 31:57)

• The Cash Bail Debate:
  • The hosts introduce Topo Padilla, a veteran bail agent, to illuminate why bail exists and the problems with "cashless bail" or catch-and-release policies advocated by progressive states.
  • Topo Padilla explains the role of bail:
    "Bail has really one sole purpose... accountability that people go to court... If they don't, it is our job to return them to court at no cost to taxpayers." (24:28)
  • On the importance of 'skin in the game':
    "Recidivism happens when you have no skin in the game... our system does work." (25:13)
  • Padilla's data:
    "We have over a 98% success rate in turning people to court. If you compare that to somebody who just signs a piece of paper and is released... fugitive rates skyrocket." (27:45-30:35)
  • On the growth of fugitive cases:
    "We in the bail profession created a fugitive... That is a problem we have in this country." (30:35)
  • Hosts decry the "luxury beliefs" of progressive elites:
    "Meanwhile, in the hood, the people know exactly how it works and they hate the idea." (29:53, Joe Getty)
• Failure of the Mental Health/Judicial System:
  • Reflecting on a high-profile murder in Charlotte, the hosts say the perpetrator was clearly dangerously unstable but society failed to intervene before tragedy.
  • Ben Ferguson on the real issue:
    "Mostly a failure of our... judicial system, our mental health [system], the way we deal, all of that." (31:58)
• Cultural Reluctance to Incarcerate the Mentally Unwell:
  • Joe Getty quotes Nellie Bowles of The Free Press:
    "In America, every lunatic gets one free murder... A lunatic who runs around trying to kill should at least get one before he is locked up." (34:14)

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4. Media Blind Spots: Homelessness, Drugs, and Public Policy

(39:22 - 44:27)

• Ignoring the Drug Crisis in Homelessness Reporting:
  • The hosts dissect a Seattle Times article on homelessness, condemning it for never mentioning drugs as a major factor.
  • Joe Getty vents his disbelief:
    "It does not once mention drugs or drug abuse. Not once." (42:15)
  • Ben Ferguson summarizes why this matters:
    "That is the leading reason for the street person problem." (42:19)
  • On the journalistic and political failure:
    “You’re forbidden to talk about the actual dynamics of what’s happening... To remain a liberal in good standing...” (43:03, Joe Getty)
• Wider Cultural Implications:
  • Avoidance of inconvenient truths in media and politics enables worsening conditions and ineffective policies.

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5. Other Notable Segments & Quotes

• Mike Tyson, Fentanyl, and Addiction:

  • Noted as a tangent, but searing in commentary on the potency and social threat of fentanyl.
    Ben Ferguson summarizes Tyson's experience:
    "Tyson said he was on it for a while for his toe... when he stopped it, he was full on throwing up and shakes and everything... it's crazy addictive. Like really, really." (20:05) Joe Getty on the street availability:
    "The idea that you're buying it from some dude on the street and you're trusting them to get the dosage right. It's just... it could kill hundreds of thousands of people. Whoops. It has." (19:14)

• On Divorce Language:

  • Ben Ferguson critiques cultural framing:
    “I wish we would change the way we talk about that... to filed for divorce from their family... that's what you're doing... The kids, though, huge deal. Never gets mentioned.” (17:03)

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Memorable Quotes & Moments

• On the Impossibility of Bureaucratic Solutions to Education:
  • Joe Getty (04:00):
    “The idea that your child learns to read and write because of the federal Department of Education is hilarious.”
• On the real problems in education:
  • Joe Getty (07:31):
    “Handwriting is an incredible stimulator of your brain, connecting the mechanical with the cerebral. We're talking about your brain... and there's practically no substitute for it for developing your brain.”
• On the policy divide:
  • Joe Getty (29:53):
    "Meanwhile, in the hood, the people know exactly how it works and they hate the idea."
• On the cost of current progressive crime policy:
  • Joe Getty (34:14, quoting Nellie Bowles):
    “In America, every lunatic gets one free murder...”
• On journalistic malpractice in the Seattle Times:
  • Joe Getty (42:15):
    "It does not once mention drugs or drug abuse. Not once."
  • Ben Ferguson (42:19):
    "That is the leading reason for the street person problem."

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• Narco Boat and Drug Policy: 01:16 – 03:16
• Public Education in Decline: 03:16 – 14:23
• Bail, Crime, and Justice System (Topo Padilla interview): 23:25 – 31:57
• Mental Health Failures & Crime: 31:57 – 36:15
• Media Blindness on Drugs/Homelessness: 39:22 – 44:27
• Fentanyl & Mike Tyson Sidebar: 17:55 – 20:46

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Episode Takeaways

• Complex Problems Require Honest Discussion: Across topics—education, drug policy, crime, and homelessness—the Armstrong & Getty team advocates for blunt honesty over polite avoidance.
• Systemic Issues, Not Just Policy Gaps: Schools, courts, mental health, and even journalism are each indicted for contributing to or enabling ongoing crises.
• Cultural and Political Blindness: The refusal to acknowledge inconvenient truths—especially regarding the impacts of drug addiction and homelessness—perpetuates failed policies.
• Need for Accountability: From students advancing without mastery to criminals released without consequence, the theme of accountability—from family to government—runs through the hour.

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For a direct, unvarnished look at today's headlines—and a challenge to accepted narratives—this episode of Armstrong & Getty brings both urgency and clarity.

Transcript

[Jack Armstrong]

This is an iHeart podcast.

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[Joe Getty]

Bring the boom.

[Ben Ferguson]

Xboom I'm Ben Ferguson.

[Ted Cruz]

And I'm Ted Cruz. Three times a week we do our podcast, Verdict with Ted Cruz.

[Ben Ferguson]

Nationwide, we have millions of listeners.

[Ted Cruz]

Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, we break down the news and bring you behind the scenes inside the White House, inside the Senate, inside the United States Supreme Court.

[Ben Ferguson]

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[Ted Cruz]

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[Ben Ferguson]

So download Verdict with Ted Cruz now, wherever you get your podcasts.

Broadcasting live from the Abraham Lincoln Radio Studio at the George Washington Broadcast Center.

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Jack Armstrong and Joe Getty.

[Jack Armstrong]

Armstrong and Getty.

[Ben Ferguson]

And now, here's Armstrong and Getty. Another narco boat going up in flames, this time at the hands of the Coast Guard south of the Galapagos Islands in the Pacific. The Coast Guard posting on X saying over the weekend, as part of Operation Pacific Viper, the Coast Guard Cutter Stone conducted three interdictions in a single night, seizing nearly £13,000 of cocaine and apprehending seven suspected drug smugglers. And while this operation was more of a law enforcement interdiction rather than a shoot to kill military strike like we recently saw over a week ago with that Venezuelan narco boat. All of this is part of the Trump administration's crackdown on cartels. I don't know what I think about this. I was watching Rand Paul on some cable show yesterday argue even if they were drug runners, they could have been running drugs to somewhere else. We're not the only country that likes drugs. There's lots of places that like drugs. And are we just going to kill all drug dealers anywhere in the world that are sending drugs anywhere? I mean, how do, how do we figure this out?

[Joe Getty]

Yeah, I don't think it's as nearly as simple as a lot of people are portraying it, partly because it's kind of funny. And directionally, everybody wants a tougher border and standing up to the cartels because they're monstrous.

[Ben Ferguson]

I'm not worried about it and make that clear.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah, but you Know, somebody also pointed out that these guys in the boats are either like the lowest level guys or fishermen who are just trying to earn a little extra money by taking a bail from here to there. They don't ask any questions, that sort of thing. There are arguments counter that too. You know, they're selling death, they're transporting death, and they're criminal enterprises, organized criminal enterprises. But stuffing people without trial ought to be looked at carefully. You don't really want your government to have the right to do that because it tends to get out of hand.

[Ben Ferguson]

So one of the biggest topics in America yesterday, and we talked about it a lot, was the so called national report card on our schools that came out that showed once again, they are headed in the wrong direction, as they have been for three decades at least. Um, the coverage of it was exactly what I expected. Unfortunately, it was blamed on Covid. And then they would mention this at a time that the Trump administration has fired half of the people in the Department of Education.

[Jack Armstrong]

Right.

[Ben Ferguson]

Uh, neither of those things really relevant as the numbers have been going down, as I pointed out, for decades. And you know, Covid didn't help, but it's not the cause by any means whatsoever.

[Joe Getty]

Well, and the idea that your child learns to read and write because of the federal Department of Education is hilarious.

[Ben Ferguson]

Right?

[Joe Getty]

I mean, that's a canard. Is this. It's a falsehood, please. Minor and overblown duties and just tracking test scores and forcing schools to adopt progressive policies for the last several years.

[Ben Ferguson]

This data was from before those firings happened anyway. But I guess the idea from the media is now we're going to try to fix this with half of the Department of Education. What makes, what is it that leads you to believe that more government, more at the federal level is what would fix this Anyway, where's that come from? Oh, and then I wanted to throw in, as I mentioned last hour, an eighth grader I know talking about being in science class yesterday with kids looking at their phones. That didn't get discussed yesterday. How prevalent is that around the country? Kids having phones in the classroom. That's insane to me. I can't believe that lasts five minutes, let alone school by school. The whole classroom, people are just sitting there looking at their phones. I was told that a couple of girls sitting there with earbuds in watching videos on their phone. Of course you're not learning. Oh, my God.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah, there I think it's. A majority of states now have banned smartphones in classrooms, but whether it's enforced or not is you know, varies I'd imagine state by state and even district by district. Certainly blue county to red county. There's probably a difference. We got this email from a 20 year school marm as she describes herself. I'm a 20 year veteran teacher having taught almost every grade K through 8. I've spent the last seven or so years in kindergarten and I agree with all of your takes on public schools and why we are failing. I believe very strongly the teachers unions and the inability to retain students are our main obstacles to real and effective positive change. Some other food for thought. What was the per capita number of.

[Ben Ferguson]

Retain meaning hold back or flunk like.

[Joe Getty]

I think we used to call it flunk.

[Ben Ferguson]

You flunked second grade now and then they called it held back. Now I noticed they call it retain, but you're not allowed to retain people. Why? You can't read or do math at the grade level you're in right now. Why would I move you on to the next grade?

[Joe Getty]

Says the administrator. Because that's easier for me. It'd be super hard to justify to the parents and tutor this kid and, and get them caught up to speed. It's super easy to pass them on.

[Ben Ferguson]

Part of that, there's a number of reasons. Part of it is the whole self esteem movement. It would be, it would hurt the kids self esteem. Well, you're not going to help their self esteem by sending them out into the world where they can't read or do math and they can't work a job. That's pretty hard on your self esteem too.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah. So anyway, some intriguing questions from the veteran teacher. What was the per capita number of books per child or books per household 20 years ago? How about the minutes per day that children interact with crayons, scissors, play doh before the age of five, 20 years ago as compared to now. We have kindergarteners arriving to school where we are now expected to send them to first grade as readers who cannot identify, much less write their name, nor do they know how to use crayons. And they've spent the first five years coloring with fingertips on screens. I could go on. And it's worth pointing out here that and a person could certainly say, well, this is the computer age, they don't need crowns or you know, whatever.

[Ben Ferguson]

But I was about to ask that.

[Joe Getty]

Unfortunately, as study after study has shown, handwriting is an incredible stimulator of your brain, connecting the mechanical with the cerebral. We're talking about your brain but. And there's practically no substitute for it for developing your brain.

[Ben Ferguson]

But I'm that's true. But is it. It's not the same though when you're coloring in with your finger on a tablet. Because I've done that with my kids when they would do that. It's very similar sort of motion or writing. You're writing with your finger instead of holding a pen. I don't know why that would be much different.

[Joe Getty]

I am absolutely, deeply in agreement with the need for a complete overhaul of the way public schools operate government schools. But we have to talk about the ways that families are or not setting their children and teachers up for success with what they are doing with their children before they reach the school doors. Thanks for beating the drums for sanity, KTA. Okay, keep talking about our crazy ass schools. It's 20 year school, Mom. I will tell you this and this, this is a statement that any sane, decent person must agree with.

[Ben Ferguson]

That's a good setup.

[Joe Getty]

And I will take all comers who deny that we need to approach the failings of our government schools and the failings more generally of our kids to learn and achieve with completely open eyes and honesty. And there can be no sacred cows spared if they shouldn't be spared. Teachers unions. We hammer them all the time. No, you do not get to hide behind your rhetoric anymore. There can't be any fear of quote unquote blaming the victims. There can't be any fear of coming off as racist or what have you. When you and your progressive policies doom little black kids and brown kids or whatever to to low achievement and failure. That's not being nice to them. That's the worst thing you could do to them. It's got to be dealt with honestly and bluntly and don't have a lot of hope that that's going to happen. But. And as we pointed out yesterday, and I was going to try to dredge up this article again by the absolutely brilliant Harvard economist whose name is flitted out of my head because I'm old. They figured out how to turn around schools and they did it successfully in Houston. Poor schools with poor kids. It's known what to do. But the educational industrial complex has no interest in that. Schools don't exist to teach your child's anymore your children anymore. They exist as a jobs program and a political patronage program, says me.

[Ben Ferguson]

They're still doing the test scores up on cbs. I'm happy to see because that should be a topic. And it has gone down 10 points. I forget if it was reading or math, which one it was, but one of them has gone down 10 points in the 30 years they've been tracking it for seniors, that's an amazing drop given how much more money we spend per pupil on schools across the country. More money, less result. But one of my blind spots would be, you know, I only know my own socioeconomic experience. I don't know what it's like for most of the country or, you know, the bottom third or whatever of schools, because that person that just wrote about kids showing up to kindergarten without any of the skills that kindergarteners used to have. God, where I live, the kids show up. They've already know how to play the cello and speak another language, and they've been to Europe and all these different things. But what I've always wondered is it seems like the, like kindergarten, first grade is so much more advanced than it was when I was a kid. Where does the drop off occur.

[Jack Armstrong]

From?

[Ben Ferguson]

You're doing like math that we used to do in seventh grade in first grade, but then somewhere in between it like falls off a cliff. That's what I don't.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah, yeah, it is. It is odd and varies a lot. Place to place. Quick word from our friends and sponsors. At prize picks, the football is revved up. It is fun. It is great. There are some great games this weekend and it's fun to spice it up with little prize picks action. All you have to do is pick a couple of players, at least a couple of players and say whether you think they'll do more or less than the stat projection. And they have these max discount squares of prize picks. Like if Travis Kelsey gets one receiving yard and you pick the more than 0.5 receiving yards, you're a winner on Travis Kelsey.

[Ben Ferguson]

How about if he runs into the second best player on the team and knocks him out for the entire season? Is that, is that anything you can wager on?

[Joe Getty]

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[Ben Ferguson]

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[Joe Getty]

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[Ben Ferguson]

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[Ben Ferguson]

Yeah. Travis Kelsey says he's sick over that. They just ran into each other. Him and Xavier Worthy, the fastest guy in the NFL and he might be out for a long, long time.

[Joe Getty]

Friendly fire incident. Yeah.

[Ben Ferguson]

Probably has something to do with Taylor Swift.

[Jack Armstrong]

Okay. All right.

[Ben Ferguson]

I'm. I'm happy to see up on the screen. They're talking about it. It says American kids test scores declining. It should be talked about. It is a couldn't hardly be a bigger deal. Like I said, the. As usual, the finger pointing goes in the wrong direction. Yeah.

[Joe Getty]

The dominant media, legacy media, excuse me, will all be saying, therefore we need more money.

[Jack Armstrong]

Right.

[Ben Ferguson]

And then so what? What, We've been throwing more money at it and it's been going the wrong direction, you'd think for decades. You'd think that'd be enough to say, okay, we gotta try something different.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, you'd think. But you said progressivism has is their scam is easier to sell than the truth.

[Ben Ferguson]

But you said blue states, red states with like phones in the classroom. I don't know. Is that the way it would break down? What's, what's the blue state argument for phones in a classroom?

[Joe Getty]

I've heard various arguments about, you know, the, the progressive parents who tend to vote in blue states say I need to be able to get together with my, to connect with my kids. They've got to have their phone. And I would be willing to bet a substantial sum of money that helicopter parenting, snowplow parenting is more prevalent in progressive families than in conservative families.

[Ben Ferguson]

Do you know anything, have any experience with in this new school year? Kids with phones in the classroom? Do you know anything about that? If you do, text line 415295 KFTC.

[Joe Getty]

ARMSTRONG and GETTY.

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[Ben Ferguson]

I'm Ben Ferguson.

[Ted Cruz]

And I'm Ted Cruz. Three times a week we do our podcast Verdict with Ted Cruz.

[Ben Ferguson]

Nationwide, we have millions of listeners.

[Ted Cruz]

Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, we break down the news and bring you behind the scenes inside the White House, inside the Senate, inside the United States Supreme Court.

[Ben Ferguson]

And we cover the stories that you're not getting anywhere else.

[Ted Cruz]

We arm you with the facts to be able to know and advocate for the truth with your friends and family.

[Ben Ferguson]

So download Verdict with Ted Cruz now. Wherever you get your podcasts.

[Joe Getty]

You guys see this. The woman from the viral Coldplay kiss cam moment has filed for divorce from her husband. It's the first time someone listed their.

[Ben Ferguson]

Reason for divorce as Jumbotron.

[Joe Getty]

The woman now wants to get away from the spotlight, so she's going to spend a few weeks with her sister in Philadelphia.

[Ben Ferguson]

I don't want to take a joke serious and get off on this, but I wish we would change the way we talk about that in America to filed for divorce from their family as opposed to filed for divorce from their husband or their wife. Because that's what you're doing. I don't give a crap about the dad or the mom. They'll get over it. The kids, though, huge deal. Never gets mentioned. It's as an afterthought and I think it's horrible. But that's my jihad. Filed for divorce from her family, Decided to leave. Left her husband. Left her family. Left her what? Left his wife? No, left his family. I think would make more sense and be more accurate. Mike Tyson says he was using fentanyl back in the day, long before anybody even knew what it was.

[Joe Getty]

Wow.

[Ben Ferguson]

He had, he had come across it somehow and somebody explained to him how it was like, it's something like 500 times more effective than morphine in terms of a painkiller. I've had morphine a couple of times in my life when I had my gallbladder out and then something around my cancer.

[Joe Getty]

It's pretty effective.

[Ben Ferguson]

I went from being in the worst pain of my life to zero pain, like immediately when they put me on the morphine.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah, amazing.

[Ben Ferguson]

And fentanyl's way, way, way, way more powerful than that. But Tyson was taking it for his Feet, I guess, back in the day. And he's now happy that he did not become more addicted or die from it.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah, yeah. Wow.

[Ben Ferguson]

He's a 60 year old man in the pot business now, mostly how he makes his money. And he's going to fight Floyd Mayweather, some consider the greatest fighter of all time. He's the most boring fighter of all time. But anyway, Tyson's gonna fight him next year, I guess.

[Joe Getty]

Was it Mayweather who fought the crippled Filipino man back in the day? One of the worst pay per view events in the history of pay per view.

[Ben Ferguson]

He also fought. Who's the lunatic Irishman?

Conor McGregor.

Conor McGregor. I paid for that one. I think I paid like 100 bucks for that one. Oof. Is right. What are you gonna do?

[Joe Getty]

I know a couple of surgeons who are just astounded that fentanyl is a street drug now.

[Ben Ferguson]

Oh, really?

[Joe Getty]

Just. Oh, yeah, yeah. It's just, it's the idea that you're buying it from some dude on the street and you're trusting them to get the dosage right. It's just. Well, it's. It's so stupid. It could kill hundreds of thousands of people. Whoops. It has.

[Ben Ferguson]

I know nothing about this. How many people knowingly buying fentanyl as opposed to it's in drugs to make them more addictive, do you know?

[Joe Getty]

No idea.

[Ben Ferguson]

Is it mostly the first or you don't know? I don't know either.

[Joe Getty]

No, I honestly don't know. I know they're. The truly insidious part is the second where it's used to beef up how high it gets you and cut the cost and the rest of it. But unfortunately people die a lot from it with no idea that they were going to ingest fentanyl in whatever form.

[Ben Ferguson]

Yeah, Tyson said he was on it for a little while for his toe. Mostly his toe hurt. And then when he stopped it, he was full on throwing up and shakes and everything like that. And he was like, whoa, what the heck? So it's crazy addictive. Like really, really.

[Joe Getty]

Like almost immediately I was neglecting my pigeons. It was terrible.

[Ben Ferguson]

My tigers was looking at me with disrespect.

[Joe Getty]

That's a good Mike Tyson. That's very good.

[Ben Ferguson]

Is it a mocking, a lisp, fear here he'd punch me right in the face. Oh, that's just what he talks like. That is what he sounds like. It's not mocking a list, it's doing an impersonation. So give you an idea of what it would sound like if Mike Tyson said that. That's what I would do.

[Joe Getty]

You've gone soft.

[Jack Armstrong]

Theater.

[Joe Getty]

Theater of the mind. Exactly, Michael. Exactly. Jack, you need to toughen up so things over.

[Ben Ferguson]

One of the hottest stories in America is how are all these lunatics who have committed so many crimes out on the street to commit even worse crimes. We're going to talk to one of the nation's leading experts on knowing all about that coming up next. And we gotta, we gotta change the way we do things in this country.

[Joe Getty]

What should you know about cash, free bail, that whole system? Does it work? No. And we'll talk about why Armstrong and.

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[Ben Ferguson]

I'm Ben Ferguson.

[Ted Cruz]

And I'm Ted Cruz. Three times a week we do our podcast, Verdict with Ted Cruz.

[Ben Ferguson]

Nationwide, we have millions of listeners.

[Ted Cruz]

Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, we break down the news and bring you behind the scenes inside the White House, inside the Senate, inside the United States Supreme Court.

[Ben Ferguson]

And we cover the stories that you're not getting anywhere else.

[Ted Cruz]

We arm you with the facts to be able to know and and advocate for the truth with your friends and family.

[Ben Ferguson]

So down a verdict with Ted Cruz now. Wherever you get your podcasts.

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President Trump says this murder was a result of state Democratic policies.

[Jack Armstrong]

We saw the results of these policies.

[Ben Ferguson]

When a 23 year old woman who came here from Ukraine met her bloody end on a public train. Yeah, well, one of the policies we're talking about is people not having to put up bail and getting to head out onto the street and recommit crimes, which is obviously horrifying.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah. The idea of cash free bail, which ends up being catch and release is very popular in lefty circles. But what's the reality of it? To discuss that and some of these awful crimes that have happened recently, we're glad to welcome longtime friend of the Armstrong and Getty Show, Topo Padilla, who's not only been a licensed bail agent for 42 years, but just finished up his term as president of the Golden State Bail Bonds Association, California, and also the president of the Professional Bail Agents of the United States representing agents across the country. Topo, how are you? Welcome.

[Jack Armstrong]

Good. It's great to be on here with you guys.

[Joe Getty]

Hey, 20 seconds is probably enough for 30 seconds. Why does bail exist? What is it and why is it important?

[Jack Armstrong]

Bill has really one sole purpose up for most is not his accountability. Accountability that people go to court and if a law enforcement officer arrest them and they're charged with a crime, that they go to court. If they don't, it is our job to go return them to court at no cost to the taxpayers.

[Ben Ferguson]

And the experience is over many, many years of doing this is people are much more likely to show up for their court date and, and less likely to reoffend while they're out there. If there is money up because of.

[Jack Armstrong]

Like family pressure, yes, it is accountability built by a bond. You know, I don't want to use the word bail, bond and bond, but we build bonds. Person that's in jail and the people that are bailing out, whether it's family or friends that bail them out. And that bond does in fact, and it's been shown, Jeff Risig, DA of Yolo county did a study and it showed that recidivism happens when you have no skin in the game. And what we do is we build that bond with our clients to make sure that they go to court and change their lives. That's, that's it. We, you know, I don't throwing people in jail, okay, that's fine and dandy. Change their lives. And if you're held accountable, as we know is raising children, you might change your ways. And that's, that's Our objective in our criminal justice system is to change people's ways.

[Joe Getty]

Well, yeah, one of the interesting effects of the bond or the bail system is exists is you have family and friends all get together with the bail agent and the courts as a team to say, all right, look, let's settle this problem in a smart way. Let's get the best result possible. We're all going to cooperate. Let's do this. As opposed to a guy just skipping out and doing more crimes that's not doing them any favor. What's the reality of the cash free bail bail system that lefty states are embracing?

[Jack Armstrong]

Well, if I could say something, I was on the phone the other day with somebody who's very, very close to the administration. In our profession, we have about eight to 10 people that are very close to the president's this administration. And one of the things I said, hey, can we get him? Does he quit using the word cashless bail? And they said, no, he's not going to quit using that term. It's a term he's latched onto. But it's really truly. Yeah, I was told that by somebody who's right next to. The real fact of the matter is this. Just because it cost money to bail out of jail through a bail bonds and they use the money bail or cash bail. No, it's a bail bond. And yes, you pay for a bail bond just like you pay for car insurance, house insurance. It is a bail bond. So there's a monetary amount set when somebody's arrested, say it's $10,000, they can put up $10,000 to the court and if they don't go to court, they lose that 10,000. Or they can go through a bail bonds and pay us an insurance premium. And that's what we do for the people that don't have the money, for the people that aren't rich. And you're right, what you said, Jack, mom, people will get together, they'll band together to bail their loved one out and they want to see them change as well. And that's where our system does work.

[Joe Getty]

But if you, if you actually go to court like you're supposed to, the Bond is just 10% of the bail, right?

[Jack Armstrong]

That is correct. It's 10, 8%. There's different rates and different states have different rates. Yeah, but yeah, that's what it is. And, and that we put up that bail bond making sure that you go to court. And I'm telling you guys, the stats in my office, because I write bail a little different are over a 99 success rate of returning people to court. Overall, the bail profession, it's a profession. We have over a 98% success rate in turning people to court. And if you compare that to somebody who just signs a piece of paper and is released, and if you look at that perpetrator, that murderer that did what he did in North Carolina, that man, he knew there was nothing that was going to stop him. So just, he just kept committing crimes, committing crimes. And that's a real tragedy. And it's sad that that young lady lost her life to bring this to the forefront of this country.

[Joe Getty]

What is the catch and release? Is that the term you prefer instead of cashless bail? What should we be saying?

[Jack Armstrong]

You know? No, no, it should be secured bail. And this is what I said to the advisors that I was speaking to. It should be called secured bail because we put up security, we put up in a bond. If somebody puts up this whole $10,000 that secured bail, there's a secured bill, there's one day I will tell you guys a story about happened in Placer county that had something to a father putting up cash and his son running. But it's that secure. I would rather see the term secured bail and unsecured bail. Cashless bail is a term that is getting people's attention. But the bottom line is we want people to go to court. We want them to be held accountable, we want them to change their ways. And it's just a system that has been trounced on. However, as you guys know, in 2018, Proposition 25, the voters overwhelmingly by more than 2 million votes, said we do not want to eliminate bail bonds.

[Joe Getty]

That was in the state of California, correct?

[Jack Armstrong]

That is correct. So we won there. Yeah, but that should resonate across this country.

[Ben Ferguson]

Even in California, people think the whole you get, you ain't got to have any skin in the game is nuts, right?

[Joe Getty]

It's. It's the whole protected class and unprotected class, the elite intellectuals who hold these, what are often referred to as luxury beliefs because, you know, you're affluent, college educated, generally white people who have no idea how the real world actually works, they congratulate themselves for holding these beliefs. But meanwhile, in the hood, the people know exactly how it works and they hate the idea. One more thought, Topo. You pointed out in some of the written stuff you gave us that when you just sign a piece of paper, say, yeah, I'll show up to court, whatever, and it's unsecured, that fugitive rates skyrocket. And when people are on the run, they're more apt to reoffend. So this actually leads to more crime.

[Jack Armstrong]

Absolutely. And one of the things I put in there that I really have to bring. We. We in the bail profession created a fugitive. We have a fugitive problem in this country. We truly do. And those fugitives are not out on bail. They are truly out on unsecured release. And we, as bail bondsmen are now being stymied because of a case that happened in Missouri from going across state lines, acting and bringing him back. And we are hoping that the president looks at our executive order and understands all we want to do is do our job and be able to apprehend fugitives no matter where they go, because we do have a fugitive problem. And, Joe, as a matter of fact, in my 42 years, when people are fugitives, they're not living right, they're not working, they're not taking care of their family right. They're on the run. In Los Angeles in 2018, there were more than 2.1 million warrants. Jim Cooper brought that to the assembly floor when he was an assemblyman and said that today. I promise you that that is over 3.5 million active warrants. People that are wanted, that are wanted, every time they see a cop, their stomach turns. And that's a problem we have in this country. Wow.

[Joe Getty]

Topo Padilla, president. Until just very recently, the professional bail agents of the United States. Topo, great stuff. Great information. Let's stay in touch on this. It's important. Thanks.

[Jack Armstrong]

You got it. Thank you, guys.

[Ben Ferguson]

So that's all true. And I believe it. The statistics back it up and everything like that. Having skin in the game for the. For the individual and then the people that you know around them, to keep them accountable, to show up, all that sort of stuff. This horrible case in Charlotte, the blonde girl being hacked to death by this lunatic. The guy is completely crazy. That guy's completely crazy. That is mostly a failure of our. Well, our judicial system, our mental health, the way we deal, all of that. But the guy is crazy. His mom knew he's crazy. His dad knew he was crazy. The cops knew he was crazy. Dangerously, dangerously crazy. They were like, he's gonna do something horrible sometime. We gotta come up with a way to deal with that.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah. Yeah. I want to talk more about that after a quick word from our friends at Simply Safe Home Security. The traditional security systems, which were also overpriced, bulky, so people didn't actually use them, just went off after they smashed in your windows. Right. Well, here's How Simply Safe is designed to be proactive, not reactive. They use smart AI powered cameras to identify threats lurking outside your home. And the immediately alert Simplisafe's professional monitoring agents who can intervene in real time before the break in even begins.

[Ben Ferguson]

Yeah. They access two way audio to confront the person. Trigger sirens and spotlights to scare them off. Request rabbit. Rapid, not rabid rabbit. It'd be cool, but rapid police dispatch when needed.

[Joe Getty]

Wow. Rabid police. Good lord. Join the more than 4 million Americans who trust Simply Safe with their home security every day. 60 day money back guarantee, no long term contracts because they know you're gonna love it. Simply Safe earns your business every day. SimpliSafe.com Armstrong you get 50 off your new system. That's SimpliSafe.com Armstrong there's no safe like Simply Safe. Go ahead.

[Ben Ferguson]

We've. We've got to be moving toward, and I think we are with public awareness, a more willing, more willingness to lock up crazy people against their, against their will. Yeah, we just have to.

[Joe Getty]

And look, we are more than acquainted with the excesses of the past that can be dealt with with. We have so overcorrected. I mean like in a way that is well, mad. It's crazy in itself. The. The brilliant Nellie Bowles of the Free Press wrote one of the. My favorite things that I've seen about this horrible case in Charlotte and, and how it came to be. And she describes the story and she says there are many angles to the story. The media blackout that followed the mayor's response that offered more sympathy to the killer than the killed. He was well known. I know, I know.

[Ben Ferguson]

She's a.

[Joe Getty]

She's. She is absolutely evil. He was well known to law enforcement having been arrested at least 14 times. Over and over. He was arrested and released. The obvious question is why was this man walking free? The answer is simple and you know, I've expressed this several times, but she does it more eloquently. She says, we don't like to incarcerate our maniacs until they kill. Mental institutions have been deemed too terrible an option. So in America, every lunatic gets one free murder. A lunatic who runs around trying to kill someone for years should at least get one before he is locked up. Right. Irina Zarutsko was decarlos Brown Jr's one free murder. And they have several stories about that topic. But that's right. You can do anything until you murder somebody. Then we'll incarcerate you. Then we will separate you from all of your potential victims. But you get to murder somebody.

[Ben Ferguson]

Well, we gotta change that.

[Joe Getty]

Oh yes, we do. And soon. I'm not sure how much can be done at the federal level, but it's a social thing. Politics is always downstream of society, of the morals and beliefs of the people. Culture, in short. And we've got to change the culture and help people understand that the progressive crime policies are madness in themselves. They're nuts.

[Ben Ferguson]

Depends on where you live, of course. But where I live, I walk by somebody that probably should be locked up every single day. Every day. Often parking my car here at work and walking the building. But to other places every day I come in contact with people that almost certainly should be locked up by the state.

[Joe Getty]

Speaking of which, came across something. It's one of the most unbelievable, astounding failures of journalism ever. Seattle Times, I'm looking at you. We'll have that for you in moments.

[Ben Ferguson]

More excerpts from Kamala Harris's book, which are out today.

[Joe Getty]

Stirring. Stirring is the word I would choose.

[Ben Ferguson]

It's a blame a thon among other things on the way. Stay here.

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[Ben Ferguson]

I'm Ben Ferguson.

[Ted Cruz]

And I'm Ted Cruz. Three times a week we do our podcast Verdict With Ted Cruz nationwide, we.

[Ben Ferguson]

Have millions of listeners.

[Ted Cruz]

Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, we break down the news and bring you behind the scenes inside the White House, inside the Senate, inside the United States Supreme Court.

[Ben Ferguson]

And we cover the stories that you're not getting anywhere else.

[Ted Cruz]

We arm you with the facts to be able to know and advocate for the truth with your friends and family.

[Ben Ferguson]

So download Verdict with Ted Cruz now, wherever you get your podcasts.

The new poll out from New York City about Mumdani with a giant lead. I mean, it's most people are calling it a lock. I mean, there'd have to be some extraordinary event at this point. And what does that mean for our national politics? Maybe we'll talk about that in hour three.

[Joe Getty]

Also next hour, Vladimir Putin putting a thumb in the eye of NATO flying a bunch of drones deep into Polish airspace. Holy cow. What does it mean? We'll get to that. So continuing briefly, our discussion of the horrific murder of the young woman in Charlotte and the, you know, turning back onto the street over and over again, a violently crazy person. One of the really great pieces of writing, thinking journalism by Kat Rosenfield in the Free Press. She points out the greater issue is a cultural one. She's talking about how, you know, conservatives have latched onto. This is yet another example of the idea that we must let serial offenders just stay on the streets for some reason. And, and she writes, while this vicious crime plausibly represents the policy chickens of 2020 coming home to roost that only halfway explains why the story is so captured the public imagination. The greater issue is a cultural one. A growing frustration with what often feels like limitless tolerance for public disorder and antisocial behavior. And with it, a sense that one must not only avoid discussing these things to remain a liberal in good standing, actively pretend that they don't exist. And she talks about the media blackout in the wake of this murder, which didn't last because it's too horrifying and big. And, and, and for the reasons we're discussing. But like Wikipedia, the editors are trying to take the page down that discusses the murder. You've got to actively stop people from talking about it. Which brings me to what I teased, which is the almost hilarious failure of the Seattle Times. It's an article written by one Greg Kim. Mayoral candidates take opposing tax on homelessness response. And it's, you know, fine in describing that about how the the two main candidates one is intent on removing tents and, and making public spaces usable again. Parks and sidewalks, we gotta keep them clear and we gotta get people off of them and let the citizens, you know, know, do what they do. And the progressive challenger wants to take a more compassionate approach. She agrees that public spaces need to be used for their intended purposes, but says the city needs to get there by dramatically increasing its shelter capacity. Which means finding new progressive revenue sources, new taxes. Okay, here's the punchline. This is a fairly long article. Article. It's several hundred words. And I actually did it. I read it, then did a search to confirm it. It does not once mention drugs.

[Ben Ferguson]

Wow.

[Joe Getty]

Or drug abuse. Not once.

[Ben Ferguson]

And that is the leading reason for the street person problem.

[Joe Getty]

Yet they're junkie camps. These tent camps are junkie camps. They're drug abuser camps. The vast, vast majority of it. And this entire article carries with it exactly what Kat Rosenfield was talking about in the free press. You're forbidden to talk about the actual dynamics of what's happening. To remain a liberal in good standing like this so called journalist. And the entire article is an implication that the homeless are merely people in need. Housing.

[Jack Armstrong]

Right.

[Ben Ferguson]

It's almost hilarious. I can't think of another example of this ever. When then there's a major issue, but we don't talk about by far the main part of it. So it was Seattle themselves where they had a study that showed 90% of the street people were drug addicts.

[Joe Getty]

Right? 90%. I can't remember the percentage, but a huge percentage were from elsewhere who had come to Seattle because they made it so easy and comfortable to be a drug addict.

[Ben Ferguson]

So then you.

[Joe Getty]

San Francisco the same.

[Ben Ferguson]

So then you discuss how to fix the street person problem. And drugs does not make an appearance in the conversation. I can't think of another example.

[Joe Getty]

Right. Not even in passing. That's hilarious.

[Ben Ferguson]

It's wild.

[Joe Getty]

It's bizarre and troubling too.

[Ben Ferguson]

I'll bet it wasn't even on purpose. It was that they're so married to. There's a French term for it, Fix ID or something like id fix. But it's.

[Joe Getty]

You're so.

[Ben Ferguson]

You're so swimming in a particular view of something.

[Joe Getty]

Right.

[Ben Ferguson]

They probably didn't even have to do that on purpose. They're just so stuck in the idea that this is an unfair economics issue.

[Joe Getty]

Right? Right. And anything that would distract from that narrative is verboten, even if it means ignoring a huge part of the problem. Or this guy might say it's a small part of the problem. But anyway, there's an agreement on the left. You do not admit to inconvenient truths that might give the evil conservatives, you know, a tool to to overturn your.

[Ben Ferguson]

Policies with what jobs are the most AI proof according to a poll, among other things.

[Jack Armstrong]

Next up, Armstrong and Getty.

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[Ben Ferguson]

The Boom X Boom I'm Ben Ferguson.

[Ted Cruz]

And I'm Ted Cruz. Three times a week we do our podcast, Verdict with Ted Cruz.

[Ben Ferguson]

Nationwide, we have millions of listeners.

[Ted Cruz]

Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, we break down the news and bring you behind the scenes inside the White House, inside the Senate, inside the United States Supreme Court.

[Ben Ferguson]

And we cover the stories that you're not getting anywhere else.

[Ted Cruz]

We arm you with the facts to be able to know and advocate for the truth with your friends and family.

[Ben Ferguson]

So download Verdict with Ted Cruz now. Wherever you get your podcasts, this is an iHeart podcast.