Armstrong & Getty On Demand

Episode: “She’s Draining Our Accounts From Space”

Date: November 18, 2025
Hosts: Jack Armstrong & Joe Getty

Episode Overview

This lively episode centers on several of the week’s strangest and most compelling news stories, with Armstrong and Getty’s trademark mix of sharp political commentary, dry humor, and observational banter. From the latest revelations about the attempted Trump assassination to a bizarre space-bank-heist headline, the hosts provide thoughtful analysis, sociocultural observations, and plenty of laughs. Other highlights include the evolving legacy of Gavin Newsom, linguistic trends among young people, Ghislaine Maxwell’s unusual prison perks, and the debasement of U.S. currency.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Media Coverage: Epstein & Trump Assassination Attempt

[03:25–06:41]

• Only Fox News avoids leading with the Epstein story; every other network covers new details.
• Fox instead focuses on revelations about Thomas Crooks, the would-be Trump assassin.
• Joe reflects: “It’s just freaking luck that he didn’t blow Donald Trump’s head off in front of all of us and change world history.” (03:40)
  • Further musings on how world events would have changed had Trump been killed.

Investigation into Thomas Crooks

[04:52–12:37]

• Miranda Devine of the New York Post reveals new information about Crooks’ online activity:
  • Contrary to official statements, Crooks had active social media and made threatening comments online.
  • “He was a hardcore Trump supporter. I mean like really a big Trump supporter… and then flipped at some point.” (05:42)
  • Crooks made violent, racist, and anti-Semitic online posts under his real name.
• Discussion on lack of law enforcement action:
  • “Shouldn’t he have been on somebody’s radar?” (08:23, Joe)
  • The authorities initially described Crooks as an “online ghost”—which turned out to be false.
  • “Why did the authorities claim that this guy was an online ghost… when there is all sorts of information about this guy?” (11:50, Jack)

Crooks’ Disturbing Interests

[14:14–15:55]

• Crooks reportedly had “muscle mommy” and furry fetishes, with a notable online footprint.
• Jack: “He’s like a two sport athlete in terms of perversion or variation.” (15:15)
• Debate over how much these interests mattered, with tongue-in-cheek banter about furries and muscle mommies.
• Listeners are invited to weigh in via text: “If you know anything about it. Maybe you do. San Francisco Text Line 415295 KFTC.” (16:23, Joe)

2. O.J. Simpson Estate & Goldman Family Settlement

[19:37–20:04]

• After 30 years, O.J. Simpson’s estate agrees to a $58 million claim from Ronald Goldman’s family.
• “I think Goldman going after his money all those years was to make O.J. miserable because he [O.J.] feels like he got away with murder.” (19:41, Joe)

3. Political Landscape: Gavin Newsom in 2028

[26:09–33:34]

• Gavin Newsom’s new “Young Man in a Hurry” memoir generates discussion.
• Recent media—including Politico and Mark Halperin—anoint Newsom as the 2028 Democratic front runner.
• Hosts emphasize the disconnect between national media perceptions and the reality of California governance.
  • “They just have no idea what’s going on out here.” (29:32, Joe)
• Newsom as an “outsider-insider” in the tradition of Carter, Clinton, and Obama, but policy record is deeply divisive in California.
• Notable Quote: “Newsom is also the best-positioned Democrat according to the new rules of politics, namely whether you… can become famous by breaking through on social media… he gives main character energy.” (30:10, quoting Politico/Jack)

4. Language Trend: The Disappearing ‘T’

[21:34–23:31]

• A story about “T glottalization”—the fading pronunciation of ‘T’ in words like ‘kitten’ or ‘mountain’—gets attention.
• The phenomenon is common among under-25s; hosts commiserate about their kids picking it up.
  • “My son does that and I have no idea.” (22:17, Jack)
  • Executive producer Mike Hanson joins to lament the trend: “It’s taking over our society… This needs to come to an end immediately.” (22:42)

5. Tech Dependency & Outages

[23:58–25:18]

• Discussion of a Cloudflare outage leads to reflections on the vulnerability of interconnected web infrastructure.
• “If the Chinese ever decide to hack us, what’s going to happen? That we’ll all get to live through someday. And won’t it be exciting?” (24:31, Joe)

6. The Space-Bank-Heist Divorce

[34:23–36:35]

• The episode’s namesake: “Woman pleads guilty to lying about astronaut wife accessing bank account from space station.”
• The bizarro headline prompts snarky speculation about estrangement, space-based bank fraud, and custody battles.
  • “Her lesbian astronaut wife draining the accounts from outer space.” (34:56, Jack)
  • “Can you imagine going to the bank manager and saying, ‘Yeah, I think it’s my wife… she’s draining our accounts from space.’” (36:14, Joe)

7. Ghislaine Maxwell’s Prison Life

[36:43–37:45]

• Revelations surface about Maxwell’s “perks” in prison, including getting direct help from the warden.
  • “Would you be a dear? …I’ll send the IT guy. Oh no, you will attend to this personally.” (37:09, Joe, in satirical reenactment)
  • Speculates on “white collar” prison life as actually a break from unwanted attention.

8. Inflation & Currency Devaluation

[39:26–40:56]

• Discussion around the penny’s (and other coins’) dramatically reduced value since 1966.
  • “A dime is worth what a penny was in 1966. That’s a good thing to know and keep in mind.” (39:41, Joe)
  • Jack analogizes the penny’s demise to inflation in accessible terms.

9. Historical Content: Ken Burns’ New Series

[38:10–41:59]

• Ken Burns' “American Revolution” series begins airing; hosts look forward to sharing it with their kids.
• Thoughts on teaching the Revolution without excessive “woke” overlay.
  • “From what I’ve heard, no [wokeness].” (41:45, Jack)
  • “How does he think it’s important to keep that out of his documentaries, which he seems to have?” (41:49, Joe)

Memorable Quotes & Moments

• On Crooks’s Online Comments:
  Joe: “Shouldn’t he have been on somebody’s radar?… I don’t know how many violent threats you can make on social media without ending up on some sort of FBI watch list…” (08:54)
• Muscle Mommy/Furry Banter:
  Jack: “He’s like a two sport athlete in terms of perversion or variation.” (15:15) Joe: “Maybe you’d like a muscle mommy dressed up as a grizzly bear. I don’t know.” (15:07)
• Political Frustration:
  “Governance-wise [Newsom’s] a nightmare. Ask any Cal Unicornians, including Democrats…” (27:30, Jack)
• Currency Bit:
  Joe: “A dime is worth what a penny was in 1966.” (39:41)

Timestamps for Key Segments

| Segment Description | Timestamps | |---------------------|----------------| | Trump Assassination Attempt & Media | 03:25–06:41 | | Crooks’ Online Activity Exposé | 06:41–12:37 | | Crooks’s Fetishes & Online Behavior | 14:14–16:23 | | O.J. Simpson & Goldman Settlement | 19:37–20:04 | | Gavin Newsom 2028 Political Analysis| 26:09–33:46 | | Glottal T Speech Trend | 21:34–23:31 | | Bank Heist from Space Headline | 34:23–36:35 | | Ghislaine Maxwell Prison Bits | 36:43–37:45 | | Ken Burns, Revolution, & the Penny | 38:10–41:59 |

Tone & Style

The episode mixes sharp, informed political analysis with irreverent asides and pop cultural banter. The tone is accessible, sardonic, and brisk, as the hosts riff off each other and off the day's most peculiar headlines.

For Listeners: Why Tune In?

If you missed the episode, expect to catch up on the key political and cultural stories making headlines, delivered with wit, skepticism, and a dash of absurdity—trademark Armstrong & Getty. Topics range from deadly-serious crime and governance to linguistic quirks and coin values, always anchored by the hosts’ conversational chemistry and dry humor.