← Countdown with Keith Olbermann
Loading summary
Transcript148 lines
- [00:00]
Keith Olbermann
This is an iHeart podcast.
- [00:02]
Guaranteed Human.
- [00:05]
Advertisement Voice
Most people think their insurance will cover them when disaster strikes. The truth?
- [00:10]
Keith Olbermann
Many are wrong.
- [00:11]
Advertisement Voice
You pay premiums and assume you're protected until the fine print hits exclusions, limits, loopholes. Suddenly that coverage isn't coverage at all. My policy advocate reviews your policies, Home, Auto, Life and breaks them down in plain English. They show what's really covered and what isn't. It costs just 27 cents a day less than a cup of coffee. For peace of before you assume you're covered, go to mypolicyadvocate.com you might be shocked at what you find.
- [00:39]
Child Character
Mypolicyadvocate.com then the space hamster flew his hot air balloon all the way to the bottom of the ocean.
- [00:49]
Keith Olbermann
Where did that story come from? Book? Dream? Nope. It came from a conversation. Meet Mikomini plus, the AI companion that co creates press personalized story adventures with your child in real time.
- [01:02]
Child Character
What color was the hamster's cape and.
- [01:04]
Keith Olbermann
What did he pack for lunch? Unlock your child's imagination. Discover Miko Mini plus and the Magic of AI Exclusively at Costco Decluttering is everything.
- [01:14]
Advertisement Voice
It clears your space, your mind, and it can give you shopping power with Trashy. Just buy a trashy bag, fill it with clothes and shoes you no longer need, then ship it free and earn points instantly. Build your points by shopping exclusive trashy offers and redeem for gift cards to brands you love or donate them to charity. It's time to make space for what's next. Start decluttering today at Trashy IO that's T R A S H I E.
- [01:41]
I O Nothing in life is free except this $10 that better picks is offering. Download the Better app, Pick more or less on your favorite player stats, watch the games and win some cash. It's that simple.
- [01:52]
Must be 21 or older in a.
- [01:53]
Jurisdiction where Better Picks operates terms and conditions Play Better Picks Sports just got better.
- [01:59]
10 athletes will face the toughest job interview in fitness that will push past physical and mental breaking points. You are the fittest of the fit. Only one of you will leave here with an IFIT contract worth $250,000.
- [02:18]
Keith Olbermann
This is where mindset comes in.
- [02:19]
Advertisement Voice
Someone will be eliminated.
- [02:22]
Pressure is coming down.
- [02:24]
Keith Olbermann
This is Trainer Games.
- [02:26]
Advertisement Voice
Watch it on Prime Video. Starting Countdown with Keith Olbermann is a production of iHeartradio.
- [02:44]
Keith Olbermann
Trump's losing streak has hit 27 days. His latest losing streak. Maga knows it. The head of the Republican National Committee knows it. The Wall Street Journal knows it. The Indiana GOP knows it. The Ukrainians know it. Anybody who saw his pathet credit grabbing, disinformational tweet Saturday night after the Brown shooting knows it. His own economists know it. The terrorists know it. Even Trump knows it. Since the House passed the Epstein Files Transparency act on November 19, Trump has been sinking in quicksand. Sinking. And not more than one or two of his more insane, more desperate colleagues have even gotten close enough to hand him a rope for fear of being pulled down with him. His losing streak is today 27 days long, his latest losing streak, and they are beginning to blame him. We are facing almost certain defeat, says the purulent face of the rnc, Joe Gruters, about the midterms. Then this is an absolute disaster. Then if that wasn't clear enough, there's no sugarcoating it. This is a pending, looming disaster headed our way. And then, I think quoting me, quoting the late football owner Al Davis, Gruder says the chances are Republicans will go down and will go down hard. Just lose, baby. And boy, has Trump been losing. He called affordability a hoax, got his arm twisted by his economists who know the last thing it is is a hoax. Tried to give a speech saying he will fix affordability rather than being crushed under its weight politically, and still could not stop himself. Could not mock those advisors and not mock America and not mock his own speech and not mock affordability again, and even not mock the charts they gave him and not mock Christmas presents. You don't need 37 dolls for your daughter. Two or three is nice. Gee, thanks Santi. The results the next day, the Democrat Eileen Higgins swamped the MAGA loser in the election for mayor of Miami, and the Republicans coughed up what was thought to be a permanently red seat in the state House in Georgia. And Trump still kept mocking affordability. And Trump even mocked Trump 2018, 2018 when he was caught saying shithole countries. And he denied he said shithole countries. And. And he lied and said he didn't say it. And his people who were there and heard him say it, they lied and said he didn't say it. And now he says he did say it and he said it again and he said it about Somalia and I don't know what it is, but somehow this group he has attacked seems to have been respected in this country, even by Republicans. And the shithole in question looks like Trump's mouth. And then there's nearby Indiana. Indiana is not a hot prospect to join the new left, and it never has been. And yet Mike Pence was from there. And the Indiana Republicans who stared Trump down when he threatened to cut off all federal funding if they didn't redistrict the way he wanted him to. They're from there and they told him to go F himself. And then the MAGA lieutenant governor, whose name is Micah Beckwith and is exactly as dumb as that sounds, first posted that threat online, then deleted the post and then when confronted by reporters, repeated the threat almost word for word. Quote, yes, these conversations happened. Beckwith said this to Politico, but it's not a threat. It's an honest conversation about who does the White House want to partner with? There are 49 other states competing for all kinds of projects. Indiana told the White House today they don't want to be a good partner to the Trump administration and I suspect the White House will look to partner with other states before us. But did they actually say, here are projects you could lose out on if you do not deliver for us? Political Politico asked them that question and Mr. Beckwith answered, quote, yes.
- [07:12]
Unbelievable.
- [07:13]
Hey, Becky.
- [07:15]
One, don't blackmail.
- [07:16]
Two, don't blackmail people who aren't going to give in to blackmail. Three, when you're blackmail, blackmail fails. Don't advertise that it's failed. And four, when you realize the validity of point three and you try to bury your advertisement, don't go back and advertise it again.
- [07:35]
Indiana thus becomes multiple Trump losses.
- [07:38]
He loses there like three times.
- [07:41]
And he also loses wherever he decides the next Indiana is. And he looks, well, what's the opposite of impregnable?
- [07:50]
He looks pregnable. And there are multiple, multiple elves.
- [07:55]
Not just Indiana.
- [07:56]
These beauty pageant also rans. He's tried to dress up as US Attorneys Julianne Murray in Delaware.
- [08:03]
Gone. The slimy alina haba.
- [08:07]
Gone.
- [08:08]
Ms. Uncongeniality. Lindsey Halligan going.
- [08:12]
Seven of them, by Trump's own admission, going.
- [08:15]
And Trump's replacement evil plan is to eliminate blue slips in the Senate. The way home state senators keep unqualified nominees from being qualified by the whores.
- [08:26]
Still working for the would be dictator.
- [08:28]
And John Thune has responded to this by saying no. And Chuck Grassley has responded to this by saying no. That's two more L's in one game. No, three L's in one game. He'd already tried to get them to eliminate the filibuster too. Els, ells, ells. Marching into the White House just in time for the construction permits to be denied for the new combination ballroom and.
- [08:53]
Trump Ego storage hangar. I don't know what's gonna happen to Obamacare.
- [08:58]
But he's not gonna gut it or replace it with the latest lame brained idea for a new scheme. Rand Paul's brilliant plan for you to.
- [09:07]
Buy your insurance on Amazon or at.
- [09:11]
Sam's Club or at.
- [09:15]
Hey Randy, maybe I can buy my insurance from your neighbor.
- [09:18]
He seemed to come out of his problems okay. Trump's health care plan fell in the Senate. Maybe he can find a new one on Amazon. Marjorie Taylor Greene remains under the influence of a possibly transient but definitely tertiary stage case of conscience in open rebellion. Planning one final bid to unseat Speaker Johnson before she leaves the house. The $2,000 tariff checks are gone. Huge checks never happened. Buy your own insurance checks have apparently been replaced by Domino's New avoid the NOID insurance. Trump's approval numbers are frozen. Pizza economy approvals down to 31%. And if the Obamacare subsidies expire, that.
- [10:03]
Advertisement Voice
Approval will drop below 30.
- [10:05]
Keith Olbermann
And maybe take his overall approval with it, because even his people realize he is turning this place into a shithole country. The Trump Ls are everywhere. You can't spell Kilmar Abrego Garcia without a Trump L. The courts have ordered him to let go of the LA National Guard troops. He's losing in wars. He said he'd already settled or would settle in 24 hours or 24 days or 24 weeks. Ukraine is further from peace than ever. The Thailand, Cambodia war, Trump said he ended on Friday, resumed on Saturday. His peace in the Middle east saw the Israelis kill a top Hamas commander over the weekend, an attack in Syria, three Americans dead, including two service members, and he promised serious retaliation. And he would have sounded tougher if he'd said, I'm gonna hit you real hard. Like I said at the top, there are so many ells, and for 27 days at least, there have been nothing but Ls that even Trump has begun to notice. So add that to the list of Ls. His ability to believe his own bullshit is showing holes. He still clings to this financial imbecility, that tariffs will turn the economy into a money printing machine, even for people not named Trump or Musk or Bezos. But even he has now told the Wall Street Journal, yeah, he doesn't know when that money printing machine will actually turn on. The Journal interviewed him Friday in the Oval, and he must have stepped in some reality and couldn't get it off his shoes. Quoting them, quoting him, he acknowledged that he couldn't predict if that would translate into political gains for Republicans next fall. Asked whether Republicans would lose the house in November, Trump said, quote, I can't tell you, I don't know when all of this money is going to kick in. Narrator it didn't kick in. Wait, there's more. Quote, I've created the greatest economy in history, but it may take people a while to figure all these things out.
- [12:20]
Oh, they figured it out, Donald.
- [12:23]
They figured it out. Saturday night. When rushing, stumbling, waddling to grab credit, almost literally climbing over the bodies of dead students to claim he had found their killer, Trump posted this. I have been briefed on the shooting that took place at Brown University in Rhode Island. The FBI is on the scene. The suspect is in custody. God bless the victims and the families of the victims, exclamation point F you, buddy. You've stepped on your dick again. You've stepped on your tiny dick again. While millions mourned and questioned what is wrong with this goddamned country that we.
- [13:03]
Throw school kids, whether toddlers or teenagers.
- [13:07]
Into the balk volcano like we were practicing the human sacrifice madness of the Aztecs just to protect your right to walk around with a gun? Sure, what's another bunch of human hearts? What's another bunch of kids? As long as people know that Trump alone has found the real killer. Wait, what's that you're saying they, they haven't found the real killer? They hadn't found the real killer when he posted that. So now in just three months, Trump's bubble headed FBI director who didn't know the job meant work. He thought it only meant a free jet. He wrongly said they'd caught the Charlie Kirk assassin. And now Trump has made the same mistake and tried to blame his mistake on others. And when you do that and when you post that, you open yourself up to attacks from the other side, like Chris Murphy attacked on State of the Union yesterday. He said it opaquely, he said it with nuance. But make no mistake, this is a US Senator blaming the President of the United States for this gun attack and the next gun attack, quote, right now we don't have the leadership in Washington to do anything, anything to respond to the shooting this weekend. Trump has been engaged in a pretty deliberate campaign to try to make violence more likely in this country. And I think you're unfortunately going to see the results of that on the streets of America. He's knowingly restoring gun rights to dangerous people. He is cutting off grants that have bipartisan support to try to interrupt violence in our cities or to try to get necessary mental health resources to families and children in need.
- [14:45]
Unquote.
- [14:49]
As I said earlier, this has been going on all of these Ls since at least the 19th of November, when enough MAGA congressmen realized that only one of these things could happen. They could continue to help Trump hide the Epstein files, or they could get reelected. That's why of all these Ls, the biggest Trump loss in the last 27 days may have been the release of those four pictures of him with Jeffrey Epstein. The photos show nothing. The photos would therefore normally mean nothing. But they serve as a reminder that Trump tried to stop you from seeing photos of him with Epstein. That those photos that were released weren't part of that tranche in the files.
- [15:32]
That doesn't matter.
- [15:33]
It only raises a kind of instinctive speculation about how much worse the those other Epstein Trump photos might be. It keeps the Epstein story alive when Trump could have killed it weeks ago, months ago. Even if there was stuff more incriminating about him than, say, a drawing of a naked woman made out to Epstein that he may or may not have drawn, but he sure as shit signed right over the naughty bits. Instead of moving Epstein off the table and out of the picture, he's letting it drip, drip, drip, drip on him. The photos mean nothing. Yet here they are, just another element that says this is Trump's scandal. The way the constant coverage of Clinton Lewinsky even when there was no actual news for days, for weeks, kept that front of mind for all of the year 1998. I'll tell you something. At MSNBC in 1998, the promo department used to ask our staffers every day to give them something, anything, a news morsel that could turn into a 30 second promo for tomorrow's show. And on Thursday, they used to have to turn something into a promo for Monday's show. Monday on the White House in crisis. We were locking in the crisis four days in advance. We were programming the crisis. And when we hit Friday, and those files are by law required to be released, whatever is released will be another Trump L, and whatever isn't released will be another Trump L. And Lord knows how many Ls there will be if there's something actually startling in the files. And that's the point. It doesn't have to be a good scandal to be a gripping scandal. It just has to have new stories every day. That's what Clinton Lewinsky's true meaning was. And as Philip Bump pointed out, Trump basically got elected by knowing this. There wasn't crap actually in WikiLeaks or her emails, except that there was always something new in them.
- [17:37]
So, in sum, more losses than the 1962 New York Mets, or if you are a current New York Mets fan, more losses than the 20, 25, 26 off season New York Mets. And maybe it's only one hour a week, but even Trump knows it. During that hour and way more than one hour a week, the Trump media industrial complex knows it. It's not my habit to quote the insufferable, inexhaustible, phony Peggy Noonan, but when there's a column in the goddamned Rupert Murdoch goddamned Wall Street Journal titled Trump may be losing his touch. Yeah, I'm quoting it. 136 words. I swear. That's it for this year. Just 136 words. And don't be thrown by the imaginary world in which Peggy Noonan lives. She still thinks Ronald Reagan isn't in hell, and now she thinks Charlie Kirk was a mediating force inside the Trump cult. Okay, just. Just go with that. But the other points she makes are salient and deadly. Quote, outside Washington, Mr. Trump's base is fighting with itself. America first is saying, I'm not MAGA. Conspiracies all over Israel killed Charlie. The assassination of Charlie Kirk, she writes, looks increasingly like an epicol event. Did he understand how much he was holding together the Trumpian right? Without the force of his mediating presence, they are cracking up. Percolating below unseen is the price you pay in time for success. The President's border triumph. Sorry, what? The President's border triumph will likely weaken his and Magnus political position. He shut down illegal immigration on the southern border, which had been more or less open for decades. But it was anger at illegal immigration, Noonan writes, that kept his base cleaved to him and allied with each other. Remove the issue that made you and you could no longer use it to gain votes or maintain unity.
- [19:47]
Advertisement Voice
Oh, no.
- [19:48]
Keith Olbermann
Oh, dear. Trump's lost his touch.
- [19:50]
God damn shame.
- [19:52]
Not gonna affect those midterms and give us enough Democratic congressmen to impeach him and enough Democratic senators to remove him, is it?
- [20:01]
Advertisement Voice
Oh, really?
- [20:01]
Keith Olbermann
You think so? Wow, that'll be fun.
- [20:04]
Let me quote this RNC blob Gruders again. Quoting me again, quoting Al Davis again. Republicans will go down and will go down hard. Okay, two quick media notes. The CBS evening News about Bari Weiss. Weiss, edited by Bari Weiss, anchored by Bari Weiss, starring Bari Weiss is not going so well. If she had not been put there to do something bad like this, her stay on this job might be as long as Ronna Romney's glorious hour. And a half as an MSNBC commentator. It was Brian Steinberg in Variety who noticed this and to whom all credit goes. And I'm just going to quote him and read his story from Variety that at Bari Weiss Town hall with Erica Kirk, the Merry Widow, the woman who used all the eyeliner left over after JD Vance got done, no real advertiser was willing to buy time on it. No real advertiser was willing to buy time on the CBS television network, Mr. Steinberg writes. Headline Big advertisers appear wary of CBS News Bari Weiss Town hall format during a Saturday night town hall led by Barry Weiss, the recently named editor in chief of CBS News, and I believe she liked the article so far. Most of Madison Avenue sought an off ramp, steinberg writes. The news Special aired at 8pm on Saturday, one of the least watched hours in broadcast tv, and that may have contributed to a relative dearth of top advertisers appearing to support the show during the hour. Commercial breaks were largely filled with spots from direct response advertisers, including the dietary supplement Super Beats, the home repair service Homeserve.com and Carfax, a supplier of auto ownership data. Viewers of the telecast on WCBS, CBS's flagship station in New York, even saw a commercial for Chia Pet, the terracotta figure that sprouts plant life after a few weeks. I wonder if CBS will still sprout pant life after a few weeks.
- [22:40]
Continuing the article, a more moneyed class.
- [22:43]
Of sponsors was evident during the first commercial break appearing in the 9pm hour on CBS, a rebroadcast of a 2024 episode of 48 Hours. Marketers appearing included Amazon Ferrero Group and Procter and Gamble. Unquote. Uh oh, congrats Barry Weiss and the Ellisons. You've turned CBS News into overnights on superstation WTBS in 1976.
- [23:10]
Got a Ginsu knife collection for sale there, Barry? But wait, what was that again about Chia Pets? Viewers of the telecast on wcbs, CBS was flagship station in New York, even saw a commercial for Chia Pet, the terracotta figure that sprouts plant life after a few weeks.
- [23:26]
Oh my God. Chia Pet Co. I'll give you 1000 doll if you make a Bari Weiss Chia Pet.
- [23:33]
Advertisement Voice
Please.
- [23:34]
Keith Olbermann
Oh please, please please please please.
- [23:38]
Meanwhile, something that a week ago would.
- [23:40]
Have outdrawn the Bari Weiss Town hall with Tammy Faye Baker Kirk may now belong to the ages as well.
- [23:48]
As vivid as parts of the latest.
- [23:50]
Ryan Lizzo response to Olivia Newsy may.
- [23:53]
Have been the whole Thing has collapsed.
- [23:55]
Under the realization that actually the only guaranteed audience for Liz's segments have been Olivia's other exes. Her book, first week out, first publication week, maximum visibility. As you probably have not heard, her book, the first week sold with all that publicity, including the most thorough job of the New York Times ever, missing the lead and the next 20 off leads in its history. That book sold sold 1,165 copies. A book that sold 5,000 copies the same week placed 50th among nonfiction sellers. Not great, Bob. So barring anything else that might come up later on in this, to which I could add something that is either relevant or true, I'll bow out here. But I do want to read one last paragraph because this is the easiest way for me to get Mr. Leza an answer. He apparently let me quote him quote Olivia, this person said, was starting to tell people that I might kill her. I tried to explain that Olivia watched a lot of Law and Order growing up and has an active imagination, especially when it comes to being killed. She feared that her mother would kill her. She had told me that she thought Keith might kill her, and now I have to assume she told Keith the same thing about me. Of course, she repeatedly told me that she feared Bobby would kill her, and now she was saying that I might kill her. I never heard her say one way or the other about Mark Sanford's level of interest in killing her. That's a good line. So many people were out to kill her, and yet here she was at 31, somehow very much alive. End quote. Okay, Ryan, I haven't talked to her since 2015. And by the way, every contact I've had with her since 2015 was about what to do with her clothes or about the health of what had been our dogs, about which she had no interest for which I will never forgive her, and which I think summarizes her. Once I did post on Facebook 2018 maybe, that the place in Central park that you two guys like to hang out at was by utter coincidence right on the path. I walked the dogs every day and way too near my home. And it was a miracle we hadn't run into each other already. So maybe we should all make that at our dmz. But about the killing her.
- [26:33]
Question.
- [26:34]
Exhale, Ryan. She never told me she thought you might kill her. She only told me she thought you were stalking her.
- [26:46]
Advertisement Voice
Also of interest here, a top governor.
- [26:48]
Keith Olbermann
Tries to insist Democrats have a hand in political violence in this country. And this would just be stupid if this governor weren't a Democrat. And if he weren't the Democratic governor whose fascist haters tried to burn him and his family alive in their own home during Passover. Worst Persons is next.
- [27:07]
This is countdown.
- [27:09]
Advertisement Voice
Most people think their insurance will cover them when disaster strikes. The truth?
- [27:14]
Keith Olbermann
Many are wrong.
- [27:16]
Advertisement Voice
You pay premiums and assume you're protected until the fine print hits exclusions, limits, loopholes. Suddenly that coverage isn't coverage at all. My policy advocate reviews your policies, Home, Auto Life and breaks them down in plain English. They show what's really covered and what isn'. It costs just 27 cents a day less than a cup of coffee. For peace of mind before you assume you're covered, go to mypolicyadvocate.com you might be shocked at what you find.
- [27:44]
Child Character
Mypolicyadvocate.com then the space hamster flew his hot air balloon all the way to the bottom of the ocean.
- [27:53]
Keith Olbermann
Where did that story come from? Book Dream? Nope. It came from a conversation. Meet Miko Mini plus, the AI companion that co creates personalized story adventures with your child in real time.
- [28:06]
Child Character
What color was the hamster's cape and what did he pack for lunch?
- [28:10]
Keith Olbermann
Unlock your child's imagination. Discover Miko Mini plus and the magic of AI Exclusively at Costco Cleaning out.
- [28:18]
Advertisement Voice
Your home is everything. It clears your space, your mind, and it can give you holiday shopping power. With Trashy. Trashy is the easiest way to tidy up for the holidays. Clean out and donate what you don't need and make room for stuff you'll actually enjoy. Just buy a trashy bag, fill it with anything you no longer need, any brand, any condition. We take everything, then ship it free and earn trashy cash points instantly guaranteed. Keep earning points when you shop exclusive trashy deals and redeem for shopping wherever you want or even donate them to charity. It's simple, it's satisfying, and it's sustainable, since 95% of what you send gets reused or recycled. So those pants you love but never wear, instead of your closet or a landfill, they could wind up hugging someone else's butt while also unlocking a little festive shopping power for you. Buy your bag and clean out for the holidays at Trashy IO that's T R A S H I E IO.
- [29:18]
Yo, do you know Ball well? Come proof with a free $10 from Better Picks. Download the Better app, pick more or less on your favorite player's stats, watch the games, and win some cash.
- [29:26]
Keith Olbermann
Match.
- [29:26]
Advertisement Voice
It's that simple.
- [29:27]
Must be 21 or older in a.
- [29:28]
Jurisdiction where Better Picks operates terms and conditions Apply Better picks. Sports just got better.
- [29:33]
10 athletes will face the toughest job interview in fitness that will push past physical and mental breaking points. You are the fittest of the fit. Only one of you will leave here with an IFIT contract for $250,000 dollars.
- [29:52]
Keith Olbermann
This is where mindset comes in.
- [29:54]
Advertisement Voice
Someone will be eliminated.
- [29:56]
Pressure is coming down.
- [29:59]
Keith Olbermann
This is Trainer Games.
- [30:01]
Advertisement Voice
Watch it on prime video starting January 8th.
- [30:04]
Keith Olbermann
This is Countdown with Keith Olbermann. Still ahead on this edition of Countdown, 65 years ago this month, a little boy named Theo Dahl was hit by a New York City cab while being pushed across the street in his baby carriage. He was never the same. Nor was his father, who in part to entertain his stricken son wrote a book called Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. And although the next development was not quite on that level of importance, the writing of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory led me to write to Theo's dad, who was the legendary, both good and bad legendary Roald Dahl, to write him a fan letter. And he wrote back and he wrote back again. And these letters are referenced somehow in Roald Dahl's official biography. This very strange story ahead in things I promise not to tell first. Believe it or not, there's still more new idiots to talk about. The roundup of the miscreants, morons and dunning Kruger effect specimens who constitute today's other worst persons in the world. The runner up to the runner up bronze Anna Paulina Luna, the congresswoman from Smolensk. Oh no, I'm sorry, I got that wrong from Florida. Problem is she might as well be and it might as well be Smolensk. The Russian embassy in the US Social media account has posted her photo and quote at the invitation by Rep. Luna. Ambassador Dartkiev visited her Christmas reception on Capitol Hill. Wonderful event with warm atmosphere and exceptional hospitality. Continue working to make Russian American relations great again. Yeah, sorry. Anybody who thinks we should have great relations with Russia before the Russians overthrow the Putin dictatorship is not totally loyal to this country, but really dumb. Not loyal and dumb.
- [32:26]
Advertisement Voice
Sorry.
- [32:27]
Keith Olbermann
Russia is our enemy, but there are degrees of how truly not you can be. And from the Twitter X account of the gadfly J in Kyiv comes this addendum to that photo of Luna to whom the Russians gave their JFK files because why would they ever give America fake historical records or disinformation? J in Kyiv notes and quoting him since August when her and Steve Witkoff met some of Putin's representatives at a Miami hotel owned by Russian business partner of Witkoff, U.S. congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna has been a prolific member of the Russian government's paid influencers program, turning her X timeline into display case of non stop Kremlin talking points. Jay in Kiev writes and continues, what she does isn't illegal. Today she gleefully met her handlers, unquote. Yikes. I don't know if she's a paid influencer or a paid influencers program member. That's Jay's assertion. I do know she operates under an adopted name. She was born Anna Paulina Meyerhoffer. Right you are Ms. Meyerhoffer. And she has the IQ of a goldfish. On a good day two goldfish. The runner up worser Governor Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania. Now look, I get what he's trying to do here, but it's Pollyanna to the point of ridiculousness. Worse, it's Pollyanna to the point of John Fetterman esque. Remember that they tried to burn the Governor and his family alive and burn them to death in his home in the Governor's residence just last April during the HOL days and he is still both sidesing political violence in America. Governor Shapiro writes, quote, it shouldn't be hard to mourn the loss of the Minnesota speaker of the House Melissa Hortman after she was gunned down in her bed. It shouldn't be hard to follow Erica Kirk's eulogy with an amen and a prayer for her and her family. We have a crisis of political violence in this country and it requires all of us to do better every time. No we don't. We have a crisis of conservative fascist maga Republican political violence in this country. And I will say this again, the assassination of Charlie Kirk was and is indefensible. But so was Charlie Kirk. He was a terrible destructive force and the sane washing of him calls for the execution of President Biden, things like that that he did, forcing kids to watch public hangings that he called for putting public hangings on Charlie Kirk called for that sane washing. All that is appalling and I get what Josh Shapiro is trying to do but my God man, the right wingers tried to burn you to death and you are acting like this guy was St. Charlie of Kirk and his rage filled life is Jackie Kennedy. Preach all the condemned all political violence sermons you want Governor, but the right is going to continue to attack physically Democrats and liberals and you know our form of government and as it turns out any Republican who disagrees with them like the ones in Indiana and then they will insist that it's only the liberals who do all the political violence Governor, they're going to do that as they have now for 20 years. You should not help them. They are doing fine on this by themselves. Do not join the both sides in parade, Governor, especially since these are the people who tried to kill you. But our winner is Howard Lutnick, chief bullshit advisor to Trump. I mean, there are lots of toadies and there are lots of liars around Trump, but this guy may be the champion. I am indebted to my former NBC.
- [36:19]
Colleague Carl Quintanilla on this one.
- [36:22]
It's priceless. As Carl noted on Face the Nation on April 6th of this year, Lutnick said, quote, the army of millions and millions of human beings screwing in little screws to make iPhones. That kind of thing is going to come to America. The army of millions and millions of human beings screwing in little screws to make iPhones, that kind of thing is going to come to America. Then Lutnick, same guy, same topic, goes on CNBC last Thursday and he says, remember, Americans don't have millions of people to screw in little screws in iPhones, but we do have capacity to run robotics. Remember, Americans don't have millions of people to screw in little screws in iPhones, but we do have capacity to run. So Trump's ass kissing bullshit artist is bullshitting us in both directions. In April, Howard Lutnick promised that Trump's America would be where millions of us would be screwing in the little screws to make iPhones. By December, he is promising that Trump's America will be where millions of us will not be screwing in the little screws to make iPhones. The arrogance and the degree to which.
- [37:39]
This man will say anything to try to make it seem like Trump isn't.
- [37:45]
Screwing this economy into the ground is seriously astonishing, even in the context of the world in which we live today. Howard, may I suggest you screw your little screws in yourself? Lutnick, Today's other work Worst person in the world.
- [38:27]
Advertisement Voice
Most people think their insurance will cover them when disaster strikes. The truth?
- [38:32]
Many are wrong.
- [38:34]
You pay premiums and assume you're protected until the fine print hits. Exclusions, limits, loopholes. Suddenly that coverage isn't coverage at all. My policy advocate reviews your policies, home, auto, life and breaks them down in plain English. They show what's really covered and what isn't. It costs just 27 cents a day, less than a cup of coffee. For peace of mind, before you assume you're covered, go to mypolicyadvocate.com you might be shocked, shocked at what you find mypolicyadvocate.com.
- [39:06]
Keith Olbermann
Shh.
- [39:07]
Child Character
You won't believe what my new friend just told me about dinosaurs.
- [39:12]
Keith Olbermann
Is your child having conversations you never imagined? Are they learning without realizing it? It's not a tablet. It's not a toy. It's Meco Mini plus, the AI powered companion that turns curiosity into endless learning. Hear the future of playtime. Meet the extraordinary Meco Mini Plus. Only at Costco.
- [39:35]
Advertisement Voice
Cleaning out your home is everything. It clears your space, your mind, and it can give you holiday shopping power. With Trashee. Trashy is the easiest way to tidy up for the holidays. Clean out and donate what you don't need and make room for stuff you'll actually enjoy. Just buy a trashy bag, fill it with anything you no longer need, any brand, any condition. We take everything, then ship it free and earn trashy cash points instantly guaranteed. Keep earning points when you shop exclusive trashy deals and redeem for shopping wherever you want or even donate them to charity. It's simple, it's satisfying, and it's sustainable, since 95% of what you send gets reused or recycled. So those pants you love but never wear, instead of your clothes closet or a landfill, they could wind up hugging someone else's butt while also unlocking a little festive shopping power for you. Buy your bag and clean out for the holidays@trashyio that's T R A S H I E I O Nothing in.
- [40:36]
Life is free except this $10 that better picks is offering. Download the Better app, pick more or less on your favorite player stats, watch the games, and win some cash. It's that simple.
- [40:44]
Must be 21 or older in a.
- [40:45]
Trip jurisdiction where Better Picks operates. Terms and conditions Play Better Picks Sports just got better.
- [40:51]
10 athletes will face the toughest job interview in fitness that will push past physical and mental breaking points. You are the fittest of the fit. Only one of you will leave here with an IFIT contract worth $250,000.
- [41:10]
Keith Olbermann
This is where mindset comes in.
- [41:11]
Advertisement Voice
Someone will be eliminated.
- [41:14]
Pressure is coming down.
- [41:16]
Keith Olbermann
This is Trainer Games.
- [41:18]
Advertisement Voice
Watch it on prime video starting January 8th. If the name Roald Dahl does not immediately ring a bell for you, he was the author of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and thus the creator of Willy Wonka. And he wrote James and the Giant Peach. And all of his kids books combined have sold about a quarter of a billion copies dead since 1990. Two years ago, Forbes placed Dahl first on its list of the top earning dead celebrities, ahead of Prince and Michael Jackson. Roald Dahl made about $513 million in 2021 compared to 13 million by the late John Lennon. And that is where the problems began. And if you have not heard about the problems, the first is Roald Dahl was often, as somebody on Twitter put it succinctly, he was often the. The C word. He was at times anti Semitic, racist, misogynistic and cruel. And his writing was at times anti semitic, racist, misogynistic and cruel. None of that has ever really slowed down his book sales though, largely because first, kids who read books are actually smarter than nearly every adult thinks they are. And second, it seemed then and now that the more problematic a lot of Dahl's characters were, the smarter he made them. The Oompa Loompas of Willy Wonka are not Dahl's finest moments. On the other hand, they do run everything in the chocolate factory. They know everything about the ticket winning kids and their foibles. And when Violet turns into a giant blueberry and when Veruca gets devoured by squirrels, it is the Oompa Loompas who know how to save them. So apparently the Oompa Loompas are doctors, or at least paramedics. Anyway, the reason roald Dahl made $513 million 31 years after he died was that his estate sold the rights to the books to Netflix. By then, the book publishers had already brought in a company of so called sensitivity readers to rewrite the more troublesome parts of Dahl's work. We're seeing the first results of this now, and it is literally what George Orwell described in his novel 1984. Erasing the past, replacing it with a new past and leaving no indication that any editing or changing was done. While I'm assuming it still says that in 1984, presumably all of that could be edited out of Orwell and we'd never know, right? But it's even worse than that, because the edits are being made not because of some pure, if misguided, desire to make changes reflecting the changes in mores and respect, changes even the author might want to make. They're being done so that the books, according to the publisher, can continue to be enjoyed by all today. Meaning they did this to literally sell more books. This is not even about well intentioned censorship. It's about profit. And if all that were not bad enough, the rewriting of Roald Dahl has, from a quality viewpoint, gone about as well as the so called restoration of the painting of Jesus in Spain in 2012. The painting is now known as Monkey Christ or Potato Jesus. Apart from the wholesale elimination of words like fat and ugly. The publishers have decided to take out references that no kid would ever notice. She went to India with Rudyard Kipling becomes She went to California with John Steinbeck. Why? In his story the Witches, Roald Dahl has the hero believe that all witches are bald and wear wigs and gloves. And that's a way to check, check. Don't be foolish, my grandmother said. You can't go around pulling the hair of every lady you meet, even if she is wearing gloves. Just you try it and see what happens. That would be an admonition not to believe that everybody with a wig is a witch. It has now been changed to don't be foolish, my grandmother said. Besides, there are plenty of other reasons why women might wear wigs, and there is certainly nothing wrong with that. It's like Shakespeare. Now look, it is one thing if you are giving a public reading of Tom Sawyer and you may want to drop a couple of words here and there. I have performed James Thurber's stories since 2010 on TV, on radio, on this podcast, in person. His epic story, by the way, forecasting Trump, the Greatest man in the World is coming up short. Thurber's daughter Rosie offered me the right to edit anything I felt I needed to edit for time or for taste, and said there was plenty in there her dad would be mortified by today that he wrote. Letting me edit it though, was like saying, hey, you have a heart. So that means you can perform heart surgery. But the goal in doing that is to change as little as possible. There are adjectives that were once perfectly normal and seemingly liberal and once thought even to be complimentary that you really need to just skip. So when you're reading them aloud, just skip them, but erase them permanently, forever from Thurber's books when maybe a note to new readers would be sufficient warning. Plus, if I'm changing anything about Thurber while transforming his work into a different medium like podcasts, I am necessarily going to edit things. A movie might leave out 9/10 of any knowledge novel, but just reading a novel aloud might change something as important as the emphasis on the way certain words were said from the way the author intended that emphasis to be. Besides which, all those changes are temporary. I'm not altering Thurber's text, I'm altering my reading of his text. And the same goes for Roald Dahl. And a lot of people saying this are people who do not like Roald Dahl, Sir Salman Rushdie wrote he was a self confessed anti Semite with pronounced racist leanings. And he joined in the attack on me back in 1989. Roald Dahl was no angel, but this is absurd. Censorship, Puffin books and the Dahl estate should be ashamed, because that's the point. If we're going to edit or otherwise circumscribe every book or author or film or producer with a significant problem, we're going to wind up with a world library of about 50 books and 10 films. I mean, this isn't Florida. And artists, like people, are rarely all good or all bad. And often they have huge disturbing flaws which can, in their own way, teach you what not to do or be in life. The publishers defended doing this on the premise that Roald Dahl's works have always been edited and modified, that he permanently changed the description of those Oompa Loompas several times to make it less offensive. And again, that misses the point. He made those changes, not his publishers, not his literary estate, not you, not me. Him. And if you're wondering why I'm going on so long about this, it's because this is personal for me. I think I learned that truth that almost everybody is a mix of good and bad, often in big, bright, ugly letters, often with extraordinary self contradictions. I learned all that from Roald Dahl. Sometime in the second half of March 1966, a letter unlike any other I had seen before arrived at our little house in the suburbs of New York City, where my parents packed me off each morning to the third grade. The words Par avion were printed in the upper left and the postmark was from somewhere called Great Missenden, and the addressees was me. It was a letter from Roald Dahl. I had a number of very special teachers in my life, but the first of them was Mrs. Marjorie Plant, who survived an entire school year of me in 1965 and 1966. We sidled down the hallway to Ms. Ritz for an hour or so of math every day. But the rest of the time we were Mrs. Plant's class. And when she was not leading us out to the glorious natural meadow and the pond just behind the elementary school and teaching us the name of every plant and every tree and every bird, she was reading to us or getting us to read to her, or one day asking each of us to name our favorite author, well, I didn't hesitate. My dad read to me each night, and it's probable somebody else's book was first, and I know he later read me Chitty Chitty Bang Bang by Ian Fleming. But the first books for me were Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl. And I don't know how many times dad read each of them to me, but I do know that somehow those books conveyed to me that books didn't just happen. That a grown up like my dad had written them deliberately for kids to read and to listen to. And this man had clearly included jokes that the kids would get, but the grownups didn't seem to notice. And this was this man's job, the way being a draftsman and later an architect was my dad's job. That you could. Could do this and people would pay you. This is how I understood about this. A thousand other writers and broadcasters fleshed out the details and the specifics for me. But the man who opened the first door into the world in which perhaps I could write for a living was Roald Dahl. So, Keith, who's Your favorite author? Mrs. Plant asked Roald Dahl. Mrs. Plant, knowing her and knowing me, she probably said, I knew it. And soon after, she explained that we had an assignment that day. We were all going to write. Great. I thought, I'll write another book. I had already written something like 40 books in Mrs. Plant's class. Two or three pages with illustrations, with construction paper, covers with staples with titles. I wasn't just going to be a writer like Roald Dahl. I already was one, not a book. Today, Keith, she said, I want you all to write a letter to your favorite author. Author. I know how to get your letters to your author so you don't have to worry about that part. You can ask them anything you want in the letter. You can tell them anything about yourself, but I especially want you to tell them why you like their books and who you are and how old you are. And on that day in March 1966, my favorite author had written me back. I had a sense immediately of it being a special occasion. I believe only one author besides Roald Dahl replied to anybody in our class. I do know the school thought it was a big enough deal to call the town newspaper to do a story on it. It's not as if I forgot the story or the letter or the sense of wonder at its arrival either. But despite the coverage in the weekly Hastings News, it still seemed like a very private family kind of thing. And then in 2010, somebody told me maybe it was the public publisher, that the private family thing had made it into the authorized biography of Roald Dahl, a book called Storyteller by Donald Sturrok. He wrote this next part. I did not. I think it's okay for me to bother it here quoting Mr. Sturrock. His stories were encouraging children the world over to read books and that many of them loved his stories so much that they felt impelled to write and tell him stories. So the current rate of letters from children in the US is between 50 and 60 a week. He had written to Mike Watkins in 1966. I try to answer them all with a postcard. Roald was always a diligent and engaging correspondent, and if he was in the right mood and thought a child's letter particularly imaginative, he or she would receive a fuller and more memorable response. When the sports journalist and television anchorman Keith Olbermann was seven years old and and head of maps in his class at school, he wrote to Dahl from Hastings on Hudson in New York and told him at some length about his own writing ambitions and successes. Roald's reply was thoughtful, generous and full of gentle, ironic humor. My dear Keith, he began, it was wonderful to receive a letter from a fellow author. It meant so much more than the usual ordinary message from a mere reader. As head of maps, you will be able to calculate very easily what a long way your letter had to travel in order to reach me in this little village, thousands of miles. The postman, an elderly fellow who comes on foot, knocked on the door this morning and said, I have a letter from you from K. Olbermann of Hastings, usa. I said, how do you know? He said, it says so on the envelope. He is a very inquisitive postman and he likes to know who is writing to to me. Who is Olbermann? Asked the postman. I opened the letter and read it. He is a writer, I said. He has written more books than me. Olmen's parents later told the local newspaper that the letter had given the boy the kick of his young life. Mrs. Olbermann added that it just about proves that there are still some very nice people left in this old beat up world. If all adults acted with such loving attention to children, would it not be wonderful? Dahl was quite sincere when he argued that he thought children alone were decent judges of whether a book written for them was any good or not. In 1962 he had written to a child critic of James and the Giant Peach to tell him that up to now a whole lot of grown ups have written reviews, but none of them have really known what they were talking about, because a grown up talking about a children's book is like a man talking about a woman's hat.
- [55:26]
Keith Olbermann
The author, Mr. Sturrock, not only put me in the authorized biography of Roald.
- [55:30]
Advertisement Voice
Dahl, he also put me in the index. There I am, right between David Ogilvy, the advertising legend, and Sir Lawrence Olivier. Left out of Sturrock's account and the.
- [55:43]
Keith Olbermann
Quotes from my mother was the fact.
- [55:44]
Advertisement Voice
That mom was a fan of the actress Patricia Neal, Roald Dahl's wife, and she had read horror stories about their marriage and about Neil's stroke and Dahl's tough love during her recovery. As I began to appreciate her point of view and Dahl's books at the same time and his letter to me, I began to formulate a theory that not everybody was just one thing. That you could be good and bad and shouldn't be judged on just half of yourself. Naturally, I wrote my new pen pal back. He had mentioned having a son about my age. In fact, Theo Doll had been born in New York just like I was.
- [56:22]
Keith Olbermann
Was.
- [56:23]
Advertisement Voice
But at the age of 4 months in his baby carriage, Theo was hit by a cab. And his injuries were so profound that for a while he was blind. And Roald Dahl himself had helped to develop a shunt used to drain swelling in Theo's brain to make his life better and more worthwhile. I did not know any of this when I mentioned, among other mundane details that a seven year old was likely to tell an adult in a letter, that my middle name was Theodore. I also apparently included some poems I had written. And I know this because, sure enough, Roald Dahl wrote back. This next letter did not come for nearly a year. My dear Keith, it begins, dated February 2, 1967. Your last letter was a very good one. So were the poems. Imagine the impact of that from your favorite writer right after your eighth birthday. But, Dahl went on, I hope you will not become a poet when you grow up, because poets have a terribly hard time earning a living. I am writing a musical film, he went on, for Dick Van Dyke, based roughly on Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, the Flying Motor Car. Could I have mentioned liking this book by a different author in my letter to him? Or did he just decide to announce it to to me? We'll be making it here in England next summer and you can go and see it in 1968 when you are nine years old. You will be impressed at the things this car is going to do with love from Roald Dahl. I'm sure I wrote again. I can almost remember. He did not write back. I do not recall holding it against him. Nor do I. Now I do recall that when I followed his instructions and went to see his movie. I think. In fact it was my 10th birthday party in early 1969. I was disappointed. Too much girl chasing, not enough car flying. Still, almost no one is all good or all bad. And every new reissue of every Roald Dahl book could include a 20 page treatise about what was bad about him and the negativities in that book and his other writings. Just so long as it is included instead of rather than in addition to the nonsensical rewrites that Puffin Publishing is producing. Also, I think it might be appropriate to mention that though the letters from kids just in the US just in 1966 totaled around what, 2,500, he tried to answer them all with a postcard or if you were very lucky, a letter, or if you were very, very lucky, two letters and a mention. 43 years later, later in his official biography.
- [59:30]
Keith Olbermann
I've done all the damage I can do here. Thank you for listening. Most of our Countdown music was arranged, produced and performed by Brian Ray and John Philip Chenale, our musical directors of Countdown, and it was produced by TKO Brothers. Mr. Ray was on the guitars, the bass and the drums. Mr. Chenale handled orchestration and keyboards. Our satirical and pithy musical comments are by the best baseball stadium organist ever, Nancy Foust. The old rimmen theme from ESPN2 by Mitch Warren Davis appears courtesy of ESPN Inc. And is our sports music and some other music arranged and performed by the group. No horns allowed. My announcer today is my friend Dennis Leary. Everything else was, as always, always my fault. So that's Countdown for today. Day 330 of America held hostage again, but just 1133 days until the scheduled end of his lame duck and lame brain term. Unless he is removed sooner by Maga and Epstein or Indiana or Anosognosia or Tylenol or Affordability or the second Strike video. The next scheduled edition of Countdown is Thursday. Until then, I'm Keith Olbermann. Good morning, good afternoon, good night and and good luck.
- [60:47]
Advertisement Voice
Countdown with Keith Olbermann is a production of iHeartRadio.
- [60:50]
For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the.
- [60:53]
Iheartradio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
- [60:59]
Most people think their insurance will cover them when disaster strikes. The truth?
- [61:04]
Keith Olbermann
Many are wrong.
- [61:05]
Advertisement Voice
You pay premiums and assume you're protected until the fine print hits, exclusions, limits, loopholes. Suddenly that cover coverage isn't coverage at all. My policy advocate reviews your policies, Home, auto, life and breaks them down in plain English. They show what's really covered and what isn't. It costs just 27 cents a day, less than a cup of coffee. For peace of mind, before you assume you're covered, go to mypolicyadvocate.com you might be shocked at what you find. Mypolicyadvocate.com.
- [61:37]
Keith Olbermann
Shh.
- [61:38]
Child Character
You won't believe what my new friend just told me me about dinosaurs.
- [61:43]
Keith Olbermann
Is your child having conversations you never imagined? Are they learning without realizing it? It's not a tablet. It's not a toy. It's Meco Mini plus, the AI powered companion that turns curiosity into endless learning. Hear the future of playtime. Meet the extraordinary Meiko Mini Plus. Only at Costco, decluttering is everything.
- [62:08]
Advertisement Voice
It clears your space, your mind. And it can give you shopping power. With Trashy. Just buy Trashy bag, fill it with anything you no longer need, then ship it free and earn rewards points instantly. Earn points even faster when you shop exclusive Trashy deals and redeem them for gift cards to brands you love, or even donate them to charity. It's never been easier to turn clutter into shopping power. Get started today at Trashy IO that's T R A S H I E.
- [62:35]
I O Nothing in life is free except this $10 that better picks is offering. Download the Better app, pick more or less on your favorite player, your stats, watch the games and win some cash. It's that simple.
- [62:46]
Must be 21 or older in a.
- [62:47]
Jurisdiction where Better Picks operates. Terms and conditions Play Better Picks Sports just got better.
- [62:52]
10 athletes will face the toughest job interview in fitness that will push past physical and mental breaking points. You are the fittest of the fit. Only one of you will leave here with an IFIT contract for two hundred and fifty thousand dollars.
- [63:11]
Keith Olbermann
This is where mindset comes in.
- [63:13]
Advertisement Voice
Someone will be eliminated.
- [63:15]
Pressure is coming down.
- [63:18]
Keith Olbermann
This is Trainer Games.
- [63:20]
Advertisement Voice
Watch it on Prime Video starting January eigth.
- [63:22]
Keith Olbermann
This is an I heart podcast.
- [63:24]
Guaranteed human.