← Independent Americans with Paul Rieckhoff
Independent Americans with Paul Rieckhoff
Bondi Defends Trump On Epstein. Can This Independent Win The Senate Race In Nebraska? w/ Dan Osborn.
01:08:48
With AG Pam Bondi testifying before Congress and shamefully defending Trump’s Epstein connections and ICE’s lawlessness, and a major US airport shut down potentially due to drones from Mexico invading Texas airspace, Paul Rieckhoff and independent veteran running for Senate in Nebraska Dan Osborn dive deep into the issues the establishment wants to ignore: the urgent demand for the full release of the Epstein files, the lack of accountability for ICE’s "dark prisons" and domestic incursions, and the "surge pricing" of groceries that is crushing American families. From the FAA halting flights in El Paso due to cartel drones to the "un-American" politicization of the Olympics by JD Vance, this episode is a masterclass in staying vigilant against chaos, corruption, the super rich and demanding transparency from those in power
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Paul Rykoff
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Paul Rykoff
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Dan Osborne
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Paul Rykoff
The IRS said I filed my return, but I haven't.
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Paul Rykoff
My refund though. I'm freaking out.
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Dan Osborne
Don't worry, I can fix this.
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Paul Rykoff
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- [01:16]
Dan Osborne
It's simple. If you violate children, you should get your day in court and you should rot in hell after that. I mean, it's really that simple for me. I don't care if it's somebody that I align with politically or if it was my best friend. I mean, if you're a part of that and you get found guilty and you should just go to jail. I don't understand why people are buying into the politics behind a lot of this, man. It's accountability.
- [02:03]
Paul Rykoff
Welcome to Independent Americans. Welcome to episode 438. I am your host, Paul Rykoff, and I am coming to you from New York City, usa, where the weather is again dark and overcast, which is what it feels like in America right now. But it is Wednesday, Thursday, February 19th. It is hump day. And I'm going to try to get you over that hump and help you stay vigilant. And as I told you before, I'm going to pick a different musical artist to introduce my boys to. Every day that helps us get over the hump. And one today is going to definitely get us over the hump. It's Jazzy Jeff and Fresh Prince, Will Smith, my friends, because we need a little summertime right now. And summertime is one of the greatest songs of all time. I also took my kids in the way, way back machine to the late 80s and played parents Just Don't Understand or boom, shake the room. I think I can beat Mike Tyson. A nightmare on my street. Remember that one? And Brand New Funk, which has a great line, no small letters in our name, only capitals. And that's what we're going to do today, is bring you capital letters and the capital five eyes that I bring you on every show. Independence, integrity, information, inspiration and impact. And coming up, our guest is going to bring you all of those and especially independence. Dan Osborne is back, the independent veteran running for Senate in the state of Nebraska against incumbent GOP Senator Pete Ricketts, who is a very rich dude who is voting to protect, to keep the Epstein files secret. Yes, we're going to talk about that. Jesse Ventura is like the OG of independent veterans after George Washington, of course. And we spoke to him last week. We spoke to Jesse, not to George Washington. But Dan Osborne is like the new OG and he is back on this show. He's in Washington. He's going to share with us why we're going to talk about Epstein, Bondi Ice and much more. But first, there is a ton happening today, and I want to lead with a story that will help you stay vigilant. All right. There is a lot flying at you on this Wednesday, but here's one that you need to keep your eye on. The FAA halted all flights at the El Paso airport for 10 days for security reasons. There was no details provided, but there was an alert that went out this morning that said the FAA was halting all flights out of El Paso, Texas airport. And because chaos and instability is the trademark of the Trump administration, a few hours later, the FAA lift the closure at the El Paso airport just hours after it was imposed. And they didn't share more information. But then we find out more. Nick Shifrin at pbs, which continues to do great reporting, tweeted that the administration officials tell NewsHour that Mexican cartel drones had breached U.S. airspace. The Department of War took action to disable the drones, and the FAA and Department of War have determined there is no threat to commercial travel. Now, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has been under pressure a lot, and I think rightfully so. He posted on X that the FAA and dod, quote, acted swiftly to address a cartel drone incursion. The threat has been neutralized and there is no danger to commercial travel in the region. He said flights were resuming on Wednesday. He didn't say how many drones were involved or what was used to disable them. But chaos and instability is the trademark of the Trump administration. And there is a bigger issue, and the biggest one of all, in my view, and that's that Trump could use this. This could be all he needs to do what he's often threatened to do, strike the drug cartels inside Mexico. And Congress won't be able to stop him. Yeah, they'd scream and yell and threaten after it happened, just like they did on Iran and Venezuela. But they won't stop him because Trump is still, especially now, all gas and no brakes. And the most important story in the world is still that Trump can do anything he wants with the most powerful military the world has ever seen. And nothing is stopping him. In the midst of Epstein and the Guthrie scandal and everything else happening, remember that? Nothing is stopping him. And he says he wants to strike Mexico. You should believe him. He says he wants to dominate the Western Hemisphere. You should believe him. And I don't think he's going to stop because he wants it all, as we've talked about on this show a lot, from Venezuela to Mexico to Cuba to Greenland. Don't think he won't come back for Greenland because he always keeps coming. Because Trump doesn't understand the meaning of the word no. Like any other rapist, he will just keep trying because only to someone like him does no not mean no. From Epstein to Greenland, no should mean no, but not to Trump and guys like him. We're going to talk about that more coming up with Dan Osborne. But especially around issues of national security, nothing is more important than keeping your eye on this ball and watching what Trump does with the military. There is no area that is more important, and there's no area more so where we need to stay vigilant are related to national security. Yesterday, a federal grand jury in D.C. decided not to indict six Democratic lawmakers. This should be no surprise. But last year, as you know, six Democratic lawmakers posted a video advising military members to to reject illegal orders. The panel rejected the Justice Department's attempt to indict them, which is extremely rare. But look, the Justice Department is still coming after those six Democratic lawmakers, including Senator Mark Kelly, who's been on this show to address that issue. You should go back and check that episode out. If you haven't, I invite the others to come on here as well. But this is really, really important because they just keep coming because Trump wants to crush any opposition, and he especially wants to focus on veterans because he knows how powerful they are. And specifically on Senator Mark Kelly, who's an astronaut, who's on the Armed Services Committee, who's a decorated Navy fighter pilot. We've talked about it on this show at length. And Senator Kelly has posted a response after this news, and I'm gonna read it to you. He says, this is an outrageous abuse of power by Donald Trump and his lackeys. It wasn't enough for Pete Hegseth to censure me and threaten to demote me. Now it appears they have tried to charge me with a crime all because of something I said that they don't like. It's not the way things work in America. Donald Trump wants every American to be too scared to speak out against him. The most patriotic thing any of us can do is not back down. Kelly's right. And as I've long warned, this is much bigger than just Kelly. And other folks in the media are starting to catch on. Missy Ryan wrote a piece in the Atlantic recently and the headline is, is the Mark Kelly case bigger than it seems? A decision against the senator could affect all military retirees. Yes, that is true. As I've long warned here on this show and in other earned media folks and hits on cnn, I've said if they can come after Mark Kelly, who is a military retiree, they can come after 2 million other military retirees in America. So remember, no matter what your political persuasion, this is something you should watch out. Because if you're a military retiree, if they can come after Mark Kelly, they can come after you. Because it's about crushing the opposition and sending a message. Don't let them do it. Continue to speak out and continue to rally around important inflection points like this episode with Senator Mark Kelly. Even if you're not a Democrat, even if you're not a Republican, and especially if you're an Independent, we have to stand up for the people who are standing up for our Constitution and especially our veterans. Okay? And we need to continue to stand up against ICE because ICE is rampaging across America every day. More bad shit. Don't believe the government. Believe your eyes. Because they're doing crooked stuff. They're shooting out tires on cars, they're gassing kids, they're busting in to houses without warrants. And I've been sharing a lot of bad ICE videos, and here's one today that I want to share with you. That's good and it's important. Check this out, because it shows you how you and we can all push back play. Who are you looking for? We're looking for a Particular person. Do you have a search warrant, a judicial? You're not going to get. This is a private property. This is. This is. You're not going to get in. I can't open the door. Are you managing your bed? I am, but I'm not going to open the door without a warrant. Okay. I'm the property manager. Okay. Would you be able to tell me.
- [10:41]
Dan Osborne
If this person's here or you.
- [10:43]
Paul Rykoff
I can't tell you.
- [10:43]
Dan Osborne
Don't tell me that.
- [10:44]
Paul Rykoff
No.
- [10:45]
Dan Osborne
You want to keep your criminals in your.
- [10:47]
Paul Rykoff
I can't tell you anything. Okay. Have a nice day, man. You, too. Have a great day. So ICE agents tried to tell a building manager in a locked apartment building that their property is not private property. This happened in Minneapolis. And the building manager is really smart. They keep saying, do you have a judicial warrant? And the agent's response, this is not private property. But she knows that it is. She knows it's private property because she manages it. And she doesn't budge. And she says, you aren't going to get in. I'm not opening the door without a warrant. Another agent then asks if she can tell him if the person on his phone that he shows her is inside. She says no. She says, I will not comply. Which is what all of us can do. If they try to come onto your private property, you can tell them that they need a judicial warrant. You can hold your ground. Do not give them information. You do not have to give masked, unidentified, unaccountable un American ICE agents information. This is an important lesson for all of us, that pushing back can happen in small ways, in local ways, in brave ways. And it's absolutely important. This is a good one. It's kind of a playbook for you and others to use. But of course, there are bad ones. And there's one bad one in particular I need to share with you today because it's an important one, because ICE has built unaccountable dark prisons all across America. Rachel Maddow was on the show on Friday to talk to us, to talk with us about this. And if you didn't go back and check that episode, please do check out that part in particular, because it's not just a warning. It's a report. It's happening. They have these prisons developing across America, and now we have more confirmation about how bad it is inside. And this. This episode in particular has been highlighted by a very brave Irishman because they're also detaining Irish people. Check this out from she. From Seamus Culliton.
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Seamus Culleton
The best way I Could describe it is probably like a modern day concentration camp. It's a bunch of temporary tents. There's probably room for a thousand detainees in each tent. I believe there's like five tents. I've been locked in the same room now for four and a half months. I've had barely any outside time. No fresh air, no sunshine. I could probably count on both hands the amount of times I've been outside. So just locked in this room all day, every day. We've got two TVs on the wall, we get three meals a day, Very, very small meals, kid sized meals. So everybody's hungry, everybody's tired, we've got no commissary, we've got no options to get extra food or anything like that. The conditions here are filthy. The toilets, the showers, completely nasty, very rarely cleaned. I'm in fear for my life down here, honestly, because, you know, people have been killed by the staff here, by the security staff, you know, and you just don't know what's going to happen on a day to day basis. You don't know if there's going to be riots, you don't know if there's going to be. You don't know what's going to happen. It's just, it's a nightmare down here.
- [14:03]
Paul Rykoff
So that's a brave man named Seamus Culleton. He's been here for 20 years and he's married to a US citizen and he's speaking about his experience in ICE detention for the last five months. He calls it a modern day concentration camp. This is something you need to focus on. This is something we need to push back on. And these voices like Seamus, who are bravely speaking out must be elevated and must be protected. And here's another example of how more leaders should be pushing back. Representative Delia Ramirez was at a DHS hearing yesterday and had this to say. She spoke out strongly and emphatically and in a way that I think people of all parties should check this out.
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Representative Delia Ramirez
Under your leadership, CBP has attempted to execute Marimar Martinez, shooting her five times and not releasing the footage that you should release so that we can see the evidence. Murdered Alex Preddy, used chemical agents dozens of times in Chicago after a judge ordered you to stop, conducted warrantless surveillance and racial profiling and acted with total disrespect and disregard for the law while engaging in roving patrols, plate switching, dangerous traffic maneuvers and observer intimidation. Again, criminals act with that total disregard for the law. And we continue to see it. You would both have us talk about respect for your mission and your agents. But your agencies are unaccountable paramilitary forces. And I have just as much respect for you as I do for the last white men who put on masks to terrorize communities of color. I have no respect for the inheritors of the Klan hood and the slave patrol. Those activities were immoral then and criminal. And so are yours.
- [15:53]
Paul Rykoff
And that's strong. That's strong. That's what America needs much more of right now. Because ICE must be held accountable. I think it's time to bring back the chant they used to focus on Hillary Clinton and instead focus it on people who deserve it, these unaccountable, criminally acting ICE agents and ICE leaders. And the chant we need to bring back is lock em up. Lock em up. Lock em up. Because there's even one more related piece of news that you need to know about because it could be impacting you or someone near you or someone in your community. To no surprise, ICE has been tracking the names of protesters in an internal database for seven months. U.S. immigration and Customs officials spoke on the condition of anonymity with Reuters. And what they told us is that they are creating a list, lists like, I don't know, the Nazis used to do. This is entirely predictable and entirely dangerous. This is how government can use the tools that we used as soldiers to track terrorists and insurgents in Iraq and Afghanistan to track Americans and label them insurgents or insurrectionists. Where are all the civil liberties and libertarian hawks now? The government is making lists of Americans, and after calling two of them who were murdered by ICE and did nothing illegal and nothing unlawful, domestic terrorists. This is the Playbook building. This is one of the most important stories to watch. Stay focused, because they might be focused on you, and we need to stay vigilant. Yes, we will continue to focus on the fact that ICE is detaining citizens and cops and veterans and kids and kicking puppies and pushing down old ladies. This is where we are, America. And if they can do it to Renee Goode or they can do it to. To Alex Preddy, they can do it to you. If you're not angry, you're not paying attention. ICE is outraging more and more Americans of all political backgrounds by the day. And we're going to talk to Dan Osborne about it in just a second. If you didn't hear my conversation yesterday with Senator Ruben Gallego of Arizona, go back and check that out, because I asked him about his strategy to slow down and potentially shut down ice. All right, I've got an issue for you that's below the radar. We've seen the ICE expansions, although they pulled back a couple hundred in Minneapolis. They continue to p farther into Phoenix, into Texas, into New Jersey, into other places. But there's something else that was reported on by the Washington Post. Shout out to the Washington Post. This is why the Washington Post is so important and so vital. Tara Kopp and Alex Horton, by the way, Alex Horton is a veteran himself, have a story with the headline says National Guard troops were quietly withdrawn from some US Cities. Now they were facing lots of setbacks legally. The Trump administration was in Los Angeles, Chicago, Portland and other places. And it looks like they've withdrawn all federalized National Guard troops from US Cities after its repeated attempts to surge forces into Democrat run states. And they got judicial pushback. The pullout was quietly finalized last month. This is from the Washington Post with no public acknowledgment from the White House or the Pentagon. Now keep in mind, there's no Pentagon press corps. There are no Pentagon press briefings. They're not even briefing Laura Loomer and the propaganda press corps. But it's a pretty remarkable turnabout from Washington, from Donald Trump and from Hegsett, where they were really unchecked for a long time. They were pushing hard. There were at 1.5 thousand troops in Los Angeles, 500 in Chicago, 200 in Portland. And they were ordered there despite vehement opposition from state and local leaders who said that the administration's moves were unlawful and an abuse of presidential authority. So it looks like all those service members were sent home by the end of January. This is now according to U.S. northern Command, now this.
- [19:54]
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- [23:22]
Paul Rykoff
Hey, I'm Dr. Z and I'm a neurosurgeon so that means long hours, early rounds, late nights, and everything in between. And through it all, I wear figs. They're comfortable when it counts and functional.
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Dan Osborne
When I need them the most.
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Paul Rykoff
So where do you wear your figs? On shift, on call, on the couch in the break room, listening to this podcast. Wherever it is, they fit right in. And now listeners of this podcast can get 15% off their first order. Just head to wear figs.com and use code FIGSRX at checkout. That's wherefigs.com code figs figs rx this is very important. 2,500 National Guard members remain in Washington, D.C. in response to Trump's deployment, but they are on non federal status. Their mission part supposedly crackdown on crime and part sanitation duty, as the Washington Post notes, is expected to last until the end of the year. There's also importantly, an ongoing Guard presence in Memphis and in New Orleans. But those missions, while they're funded by the federal government under an agreement with the Trump administration, they are overseen by each state's government. So I think what Trump continues to do is toggle. He's pulling back in the places he can't use federalized troops, and he's pushing in ice, which is much less accountable. Now in Memphis and New Orleans, hundreds of National Guard troops remain deployed under Title 32, or state control, which allows pretty broad powers for law enforcement in conducting arrests. In those cases, as the Washington Post notes, Trump has supportive governors who allow to surge, making an official request to the White House, and then they got federal federal funds to pay for the deployments. So there's a toggling that's going on where Trump will get support from red state governors and he can work with them. And when he gets opposition, especially in the courts, from blue state governors, he'll pull back and maybe go deeper with ice, which doesn't have the same level of accountability. But this is teetering on the line of what is considered lawful orders. If a judge rules that federal troops cannot be deployed into a state and Trump tries to send them, then we have an unlawful order. Then we have that dangerous crossroads that Senator Kelly and Senator Slotkin and others have been flagging. But I will continue to underscore there have been no very clear illegal orders that have been put out. There's no legal dividing line, and this is one of them. And Trump is strategically playing on that line. Of course, he still threatened the Insurrection act and threatened to deploy the 11th Airborne Corps out of Alaska into Minneapolis, but that hasn't transpired as well. I don't think Trump is pulling back. I think he's toggling. He's figuring out which tools he can use to advance his radical agenda. And right now, ICE is that tool. They are all gas, no brakes. And on the issue of National Guard deployment specifically, and which troops are federalized, which aren't, I'm going to continue to stay focused on it, and you must, too, because this is critical. This is critical to potentially disrupting the November elections. He might use the National Guard. He might use federalized troops. He might use federal troops, or he might use ice. So especially around these issues of National Guard and federal troop and ICE deployments, we all need to especially stay vigilant. All right, in other top stories, I just want to mention something. The Nancy Guthrie abduction continues to dominate the news. There's now images of a masked figure that have been recovered from cameras, and they allegedly detained someone for questioning, and then they released this person. And this is a terribly tragic story, and it's captivated the country. But I also want to underscore something. It's true crime. And true crime is very good for media. It's very good for ratings. Remember the Nancy Graces of the world. And I think many in the media, I'm going to call them out on this, are milking this one. I want to send all the support and love that I can to Savannah Guthrie and to her family, and I hope her mother is returned safely. But I would urge all of you to just be a little bit more vigilant about your media watching. Because if it's one thing corporate media knows, it's that true crime is always gonna get ratings, and so does sex, and so does scandal, which, of course, brings us to the Epstein files, which is also extremely important, arguably much more important strategically for our politics, our national security, and accountability in government. But in this time when there seems to be so much coming at you, remember to not confuse the urgent with the important. Yes, Mrs. Guthrie's safety is incredibly important, but the no shit is. It's not more important than if he decides to strike inside Mexico. So as a news watcher, as a citizen, try to keep all these thoughts in your head simultaneously, of course, try to track on the news, but don't forget the bigger issues and the biggest priorities. And make sure as a media consumer, you stay vigilant. All right? And in the midst of all the other news, another way to stay vigilant is make sure you're tracking on international news. And don't lose sight of Ukraine. It's day 1447 of Russia's full scale invasion of Ukraine. And I'm going to continue to highlight stories you need to know because yesterday Russia killed three toddlers and their father in their sleep. As again, our friends at St. Javelin highlighted. A Russian drone hit a residential home in the Kharkiv region at night. Two little boys and their sister were killed. Their father was killed with them. He was a demobilized Ukrainian serviceman who had returned from the front with an amputated leg and lived with a prosthesis. And this can actually get worse. Their mother survived and she is 35 weeks pregnant and is now in the hospital with severe injuries. This is a house they bought two weeks ago. This is the kind of carnage, the unspeakable, unimaginable carnage that continues to happen in Ukraine every day. And no matter what's happening here in America, no matter how cold it is in America, don't lose sight of how brutal, how deadly, how unacceptable and how cold it is inside Ukraine. And also don't lose sight of how Ukrainians continue to fight back. It inspires the world every day. And if you need a dose of inspiration, continue to look to Ukraine and continue to look to the Ukrainian athletes. Ukrainians continue to face opposition from the ioc, the Olympic Committee, which continues to ban expressions from Ukrainians. And there was another one yesterday from a Ukrainian free Skeeter who had a sign on the side of her helmet that said, be brave like Ukrainians. And there was another one who was a loser who had a message of support and she held up a glove that on it was written, remembrance is not a violation. Remembrance is not a violation. The Ukrainians continue to push back after they banned an Olympian named her Serovich for using his memorial helmet that was honoring Ukrainian athletes killed by the Russians. There is no important thing to do than to speak out on behalf of brutality and violence and injustice. And I think the AIOC needs to understand that if it's going to allow Russian athletes and it's going to allow Russian flags, it must allow this kind of free speech and protest and visibility from the brave Ukrainian people. If you need a little bit of inspiration in these dark and cold winter times, look to our Ukrainian friends. Slava, Ukraine. All right, folks. The opposite of Ukraine is the dastardly, diabolical and disgusting developments that continue to come out of the Epstein files. And today I would be remiss if I didn't bring your attention to the fact that Attorney General, disgraceful Attorney General Pam Bondi is testifying before Congress and she continues to do what she's always done, which is carry water for Donald Trump. And yes, it is getting ugly. Check this out. You can let her filibuster all day long, but not on our watch, not on our time. No way. And I told you about that Attorney General before you started. You don't tell me. No, I did tell you because we saw what you did in the Senate. Not even a lawyer. Committee will be in order. Yep. She calls a member of Congress a washed up lawyer and she continues to do what? What, what Pete Hegseth does, what Sean Duffy does, what Tulsi Gabbard does. They're pugilists, they're propagandists, they're water carriers for Trump. And that's what they were hired to do. This is why they were hired to do this thing. And they've gone even further. And of course, Pam Bondi wants to focus on Congressman Massie, one of the lead guys who's been pushing for accountability on Epstein. Here is Bondi reacting to Massie today in Congress. Play, respond and then the gentleman can move to chairman. Within 40 minutes. You asked me a question. Within 40 minutes, Wexner's name was added back. Within 40 minutes of me catching you red handed. Red hand. There was one redaction where he's listed as a co and we invited you in. We in. This guy has Trump Derangement syndrome. He needs to get. You're a failed politician.
- [32:51]
Plexaderm Advertiser
Mr. Chairman.
- [32:51]
Paul Rykoff
Please restore his time and remind the witness of the results.
- [32:54]
Rich Rouhanan
Here is no credible information.
- [32:57]
Paul Rykoff
None. So Bondi calls Massey a failed politician and says he has Trump Derangement syndrome. Well, here's who doesn't have Trump Derangement Syndrome. Most of America. Who wants to know what's in the Epstein files? And at the same time that disgusting thing was going on, Epstein survivors were attending the House hearing saying they haven't even met with dog joj officials to discuss their experiences. Because Pam Bondi is not interested in talking to victims. Pam Bondi is not interested in justice. Pam Bondi is interested in one thing, protecting Donald Trump. And so are many others in Congress. And we're going to talk to Dan Osborne coming up about that. We're going to talk specifically about his opponent, a Republican incumbent Senator Pete Ricketts from Nebraska, who has voted to not disclose the Epstein finals. We're going to talk about that coming up. And we're going to talk about independent candidates because they are the people's champion. They're not just moving the needle. They are the needle. We talked about it with Jesse Ventura. We talk about it on this show all the time. I'm going to continue to bring you independent candidates who are meeting the moment. That's coming up with Dan Osborne in just a second. But finally, culture. NBC and Peacock and Telemundo had a simulcast of the Super Bowl. The matchup that we all saw, many of us saw between the Seahawks and The Patriots got 124.9 million viewers. Now that, that's a pretty high number, but it's actually down from last year when, when, when we had the, the, sorry, the Philadelphia Eagles. And already, I'm already forgetting the Philadelphia Eagles against the Kansas City Chiefs, which actually got a bigger audience with 127 million viewers on Fox. So not the two hottest of teams this year in Seattle and New England. Not a marquee matchup of quarterbacks like we had last year with Jalen Hurts and Patrick Mahomes. But Bad Bunny's halftime performance did get a massive audience of 128 million viewers. But somewhat surprisingly, maybe not surprisingly, it was down from Kendrick Lamar's record last year of 133 million viewers. Now. Still a tremendous stat, still tremendous reach. I wonder if it's because it was on like three different channels instead of one. I don't know if that was it or if it. Maybe Kid Rock and maga's protest chipped away a couple million people or maybe more. So people just weren't excited about Seattle versus New England in the same way they were about Patrick Mahomes and Jalen Hurts. And also, you know, we got to remember that. Check it. Sorry. We also got to remember another factor. Taylor Swift wasn't there last year. Taylor Swift was there. And Taylor Swift probably brought a couple million viewers of her own and definitely more attention. All right, finally, in culture, I want to continue to focus on the brave, high profile people who are pushing back on the Epstein files. We talked yesterday about Chappelle Roan, who today, Abby Wambach, the great soccer player, has followed her lead, saying she's left the Wasserman Agency. She said she read Casey Wasserman's correspondence in the Epstein files. I know what I know and I'm following my gut and my values. I will not participate in any business arrangement under his leadership. I also need to say this. I am grateful to my agent who I've known for almost 20 years and trust. She says Casey should resign. He should leave so much more, so more people like me don't have to. And then Abby Wambach continued and said, I'm unclear of my next steps. That's okay with me. I just know where I can't be. So I want to celebrate Abby Wambach and so many other people who are speaking out boldly on defending American values, defending core human values, because we need that more than ever before. We need it now from all Americans, no matter where you come from. All right? And speaking of that, let's talk about sports for a second. Yesterday in the Olympics, which has been so full of emotional moments, US Figure skater Max Neumannoff, who lost both his parents in a plane crash that killed 67 people in D.C. scored a season best 85.65 in his Olympic debut. And he paid tribute to his parents on the big screen, holding up a picture of his parents. It was just so emotional. And as a parent myself, I just want to say that I was so proud of this kid and that he was able to step forward and not just represent our country and represent his community and represent his sport, but represent his parents and represent all parents who are rooting for their kids. There's a lot of bad shit happening in the world right now, but there's a lot of good shit happening at the Olympics, and this young man is a good example. And there's one more that I want to highlight. We can't talk about sports without talking about what's happening in the Olympics. And I want to play for you a quick clip by American curler Rich Rouhanan, who criticized ice at the Winter Olympics and stood up for his friends and his family and his community in Minneapolis. Play this.
- [37:55]
Rich Rouhanan
First of all, I'd like to say I'm proud to be here to represent Team USA and to represent our country. But we'd be remiss if we didn't at least mention what's going on in Minnesota and what a tough time it's been for everybody. This stuff is happening right. Right around where we live. And. I am a lawyer, as you know, and we do the cost. We. We have a Constitution, and it allows us to freedom of the press and freedom of speech, protects us from unreasonable searches and seizures, and makes it that we have to, you know, have probable cause to be pulled over. And what's happening in Minnesota is wrong. There's no shades of gray. It's clear. And I really love what's been happening there now with people coming out, showing the love, the compassion, integrity, and respect for others that they don't know and helping them out. And we love Minnesota for that.
- [39:16]
Paul Rykoff
I think these Olympians represent the best of what America's all about. Now, of course, in these times, we'll contrast it with people who represent the worst of what America is all about. Cue J.D. vance, who I think is a piece of garbage and he's a hack sellout and he shows it every single day because check out what he had to say about our Olympic athletes. My advice to them would be to try to bring the country together. And when you're representing the country, you're representing Democrats and Republicans. You're there to play a sport and you're there to represent your country and hopefully win a medal. You're not there to pop off about politics. So when Olympic athletes enter the political arena, they should expect some pushback. So he says that athletes are not there to pop off about politics. He says this as a hack, partisan politician who took it upon himself to attend the Olympics and bring ice along with him and politicized the Olympics himself tremendously. And of course, he appropriately got booed by most of the world. JD Vance's comments are deeply un American. And the whole country and the whole world can see it. It's time to call out people like that. It's time to call out the fakes and the corrupt and the crooked. Especially on a Wednesday when we got to get over that hump. Our guest today is going to help us do that. Call out the powerful, call out the crooked, call out the partisan and represent American values, true American values, independent American values. Because on this hump day especially, it is a time for us all to stay vigilant. Okay, folks, on this Wednesday, this hump day, to help us get over the hump is a returning champion, a man who is very much meeting the moment for independent Americans and independent veterans around the country. I told you years ago he was the tip of the iceberg. Well, now he continues to be the tip of the spear and the iceberg of. Hundreds of veterans around the country are following his lead. He is a Navy veteran. He is running as an independent to be the next senator from the great state of Nebraska. Returning to independent Americans, the great and powerful Dan Osborne is back on Independent Americans. Welcome back, sir.
- [41:34]
Dan Osborne
Thank you, Paul. It's good to be back.
- [41:37]
Paul Rykoff
You've been, you've been getting after it, man. You've been, you've been, you've been busy.
- [41:41]
Dan Osborne
Yeah, yeah, we, we've done over 40 town halls. We did 200 in 2024. We're hopefully break that record just getting out and talking to people and, you know, that's what it's all about.
- [41:55]
Paul Rykoff
You got some good numbers that we're going to get into. In a minute. I'm going to talk about your fundraising numbers, your polling numbers, the reaction you're continuing to get from people after running, you know, a race we covered. You came on to talk about it with Deb Fisher. Want to talk about ice, Want to talk about Epstein. Want to talk about whatever happens in the next five minutes here that Trump could kick off. But let me, let me ground us in the question I ask of everybody, Dan, where are you and how are you? Because you're not in Nebraska today.
- [42:21]
Dan Osborne
No, I am not. I actually was a keynote speaker for. At a UAW conference, United Auto Workers, and got to have a beer with Sean Fain. That was pretty cool. So, yeah, I'm in. I'm in Washington, D.C. right now, our nation's swampy capital.
- [42:41]
Paul Rykoff
What's. I always want to ask, I mean, you know, you don't live there. You haven't spent a whole lot of time there over the years. What's it feel like to be there?
- [42:51]
Dan Osborne
You know, I like the city. It's very vibrant. You know, I can go out to dinner now. I was never able to do that before. So that's something that's new in Washington, D.C. being fascist, of course. But no, I, I do. I like the fact people out on the streets, you don't get that it's a very, very good town for walking and biking. And Omaha, where I live, isn't.
- [43:16]
Paul Rykoff
And how you feeling in these crazy times, man? There's a lot flying at everybody, and we're all dealing with it differently. You're out there meeting with people, talking to people. How are you doing in this, in this wild moment in our nation's history where you were trying to meet that moment?
- [43:31]
Dan Osborne
Hopeful. Hopeful. Because, you know, the people that I talk to when I go across Nebraska and we talk about. We talk a lot about agriculture, but we talk a lot about the cost of life right now and how high it is and how difficult it is with our dollar not stretching near as far. The reasons behind all that, and, you know, most people agree that Pete Ricketts, my opponent is. He represents corporate America, right? He is corporate America. And I represent the workers. So the stage is set for the billionaire versus a mechanic. And I'm loving my odds.
- [44:11]
Paul Rykoff
So this is kind of the people's fight. That's why I've said a lot of the independent candidates are the people's champions. And there's a lot of people who are pissed off with the corporate greed and the billionaires and the extortion and the feeling like they are above accountability, like they have absolute power, and it seems to be gaining while the little guy and gal is getting crushed. I want to use that to pivot into what I think is our top topic. We talked a bit about this with Chuck Todd recently, but there is this groundswell across this country of people who feel like the system's rigged and they're punching back. And I don't know if there's an issue that embodies it more than Epstein. You've been really outspoken about the fact that Epstein, the Epstein files are wrong. You've highlighted that. Pete Ricketts, your opponent, voted against releasing the Epstein files. There was some breaking news that you canceled a fundraiser that was connected to somebody who was in the Epstein files. I give you credit for that, right. You could have just done the fundraiser, but you said, no, I'm not, I'm not going to be associated with anybody who's associated with Epstein. But I think this is a really important issue for the country beyond politics, because it's about whether or not people rape little girls and can get away with it. Right. And you've been taking it head on. So I just want to throw you the ball and ask you to react to the latest Epstein developments. And in contrast, how your opponent, who is an incumbent in a very rich guy, has been dealing with the Epstein files.
- [45:44]
Dan Osborne
Yeah, well, it's simple. If you violate children, you should get your day in court and you should rot in hell after that. I mean, it's really that simple for me. I don't care if it's somebody that I align with politically or if it was my best friend. I mean, if you're a part of that and you get found guilty, man, you should just go to jail. I don't understand why, why people are buying into the politics behind a lot of this, man. It's, it's, it's accountability. We all are held accountable for our own actions in our daily life, and they should be, too. Just because you got money, you should, doesn't mean you can do what you want.
- [46:29]
Paul Rykoff
You're. When you're on the road, you're hearing from a lot of people. You know, Nebraska is a red state, right? And, and you hear it from Democrats and Republicans. You're probably attracting a lot of Republicans in a way Democrats can't. And you obviously independents. Can you give me a sense of what you're hearing from people in Nebraska about the Epstein files in particular? Because I think sometimes the media loses track of it. But I feel like the people across the country really care about it.
- [46:54]
Dan Osborne
Well, you know, whenever we do a post or anything about it, you know, you, of course, you. You look at the comments. It's hard not to. Right. But the Internet's not a real place. I've never had anybody speak to me face to face, the way people talk in the comments section online. But it seems like you have one side. It's like, oh, why are you talking about the Epstein files all of a sudden? You didn't care back then. Well, you know what? As information comes to us, we have to talk about these things. You can't just ignore it. Just because I didn't talk about it in 2022 online doesn't mean it's not important. Right. Um, and anybody that's defending it, that just blows me away. Uh, I don't know why anybody would. Would be defending child molesters and, and, and children, trafficking children. And just what kind of world, upside down world are we living in? This is like an episode of Stranger Things here. And, but. Yeah, and I mean. But. But the people, I think most people are where, where we're at, you know, release the whole dang thing, protect, obviously, the innocent and send the people to jail that need to go to jail.
- [48:03]
Paul Rykoff
Do you think most people in Nebraska know that Senator Pete Ricketts voted to not release the Epstein files?
- [48:10]
Dan Osborne
That's a great question. I don't. I don't know the answer to that. I sure hope so. And, you know, if I have anything to say about it, by the, by the time this is all over, they will know. They should know. They deserve to know, you know, because this is. This is the guy who has taken $434,000 this cycle from corporate PAC money. I've taken zero. Right. That's who he represents. He represents the elite that think they can get away with everything. I've had over 25,000 individual donors. My average contribution still remains $43. So my campaign is powered by the people. His is powered by corporate America. But that's not what it says in the Constitution. It's a government by and for the people, not corporations in the 1%.
- [48:58]
Paul Rykoff
You know, I think Epstein is one of those issues where independents are in a unique position to lead because there's Democrats and Republicans in the Epstein files. Right. And both of them are trying to protect their assets for different reasons and cover for donors or for corporate leaders. You know, Bill Clinton's gonna have to testify. Right. And obviously Trump is potentially, you know, involved here. So I think it's a really Important issue for independents and independents like you to say, look, man, everybody should be held accountable. And because you don't have that loyalty to a party, you're in a unique position. So let me ask you to go deeper into another issue that's pissing off, I think, much of the country, most of the country, which is ice. Right. Another opportunity, I think, for independents to uniquely lead here. ICE is ripping across this country. They're unaccountable, They're, I would argue, unconstitutional. They're not wearing badges, they're wearing masks. And every day we hear news stories and get new video about how they're violating the rights of Americans. Can you just react to the latest developments from ice? You know, the funding fight is happening in the town you're in right now. You know, what are your reactions to where ICE is right now and how do you see it impacting Nebraska?
- [50:09]
Dan Osborne
Yeah, I think, you know, in regards to that, what happened in Minneapolis, the killings were absolutely wronged. And those agents need to be accountable for their action. You're a combat veteran, and when you were overseas serving in a combat situation, you have rules of engagement, and there's clear and present danger that has to exist before you pull your trigger. And even if there's pop shots coming at you from a crowd, you're not allowed to pull your trigger until you have that clear and present danger and. And that go ahead to fire back. So. So they are. They are operating without accountability right now. And that's scary. Right. And, you know, and as far as the funding goes, I don't know how you call yourself a true conservative. If you're okay with $30 billion going to ICE in this big, beautiful bill. Right. You know, it was 8 billion and 10 billion. Now it's 30 billion. Like that's insane. That's an insane number. I mean, that's more than the entire military of Poland who lives right next to Ukraine. So what is happening here? You know, so we have to dial that back. We have to. We have to dial in just out of control government spending in general. And that's certainly included in it.
- [51:32]
Paul Rykoff
Yeah, I think it's encouraging to hear a lot of independents talk about spending, talk about the deficit, talk about taxes. We. Right. Which often, I think, gets pushed aside. But coming back to the issue of ice, we had Senator Ruben Gallego on yesterday. You know, he's pushing back against funding ICE right now. This is the debate in the Senate. I assume Pete Ricketts is gonna vote in favor of funding DHS and continuing ICE as planned. If you were in the Senate right now, where would you be on this debate happening a couple blocks from where you are?
- [52:03]
Dan Osborne
I would be negotiating. Right. That's what it's all about. And I think as an independent, I would be uniquely positioned to be. To negotiate with both sides, strike a deal that the American people can live with, because that's what compromise is. Right? I don't agree with shutting down the government over this simply because, look, we have air traffic controllers, we have fema, we have National Guard members, military people serving the country that deserve their paychecks that they work hard for every day. So it's about negotiating, about getting it done. And we have to stop this red versus blue, my team versus your team, this weird mentality that is our politics these days. And I think that's what my campaign represents, is bringing people together. Because in 2024, you would drive across Nebraska and you would see Trump signs next to Osborne signs. Go a block over, and you would see Harris signs next to Osborne signs. And, you know, that's what I was really proud of. And we're continuing to do that by talking about paycheck populism, right? It's about how all this affects. I mean, most of us, we probably just see what's happening on our television screens in the comfort of our own living room. It's not directly affecting all of us, but what is direct affecting it is our paychecks, right? When we go to the grocery store. I just learned of an issue just today that I want to talk about, this electronic labeling in grocery stores where they can actually change the price of your groceries in real time. So if you go. If you're a working person and you can't go grocery shopping during the day, they'll jack the prices up on premium hours, right? Or primetime hours for shoppers. If you have a baby at home, this new AI technology that they want to use will identify you, and it'll jack the price of your diapers up before you go and you buy them. And this is something people need to know about. And we have to fight this stuff because there is a dollar crisis for me and my family. You know, I don't. I don't buy beef anymore. I walk right on by that beef section because I still look down at the steak and. And I'm looking at $20 a pound, and I'm like, nope, can't do it. It's just. It's not in the cards for me and my family. So these are the issues that are, are. Are transcend party lines that are Bringing people together because quite frankly, it affects all of us. Unless you're. You're Pete Ricketts and, and Your dad.
- [54:34]
Paul Rykoff
Has $4 billion and owns the Cubs. Does he own the Cubs?
- [54:39]
Dan Osborne
They do. And, you know, when I, I just want.
- [54:42]
Paul Rykoff
For people who don't know the baseball team, they own the Chicago Cubs. That's how rich this guy is.
- [54:48]
Dan Osborne
And what I found out. I found out the other day talking to people after the Ricketts family bought the Cubs. They immediately made it so. You know, they bought those buildings across the street where people like to watch the game. And they, they put the billboard in front of the ble. You know, they, they. They want to squeeze every dime out of you. And ticket prices are through the roof. You know, are the Chicago Cubs better now because of it? No. It's making it so I can't afford to take my family to a Cubbies game. And I love the Cubs. It's. It's what, it's what these corporations are doing. They're consolidating all of our industries and squeezing us for every last dime.
- [55:29]
Paul Rykoff
It's a lot about what's wrong in America. And the pricing issue, it's like surge pricing around food. Right. Which is, which is really diabolical. And it'd been ruled illegal in many places around ride shares and things like that. So I think it's an important issue for you to push back on. Let me ask you, just going back to ICE for a second, because this is also front and center. I think the culture is rotten. I don't think it's salvageable. I don't know if it is. And I asked Senator Ruben Gallego this yesterday, but I would ask you as well, should Kristi Noem go? Would you. Do you think she should resign? Oh, yeah.
- [56:01]
Dan Osborne
Yeah, absolutely. And here's why. You know, there. There's no independent investigations going on here. If there's. If there's a officer, police officer involved shooting in Omaha, that person goes on an administrative leave. There's independent investigations into this that are unbiased. And if that officer is found guilty, loses his job or goes to jail, and then she comes out 30 minutes later and calls somebody a domestic terrorist without having information in front of her to prove that that's reckless and that's dangerous. And yeah, there, she should be held accountable as well.
- [56:38]
Paul Rykoff
So let. Let's talk about accountability at the elections and go below the radar here. Fortunately, this is below the radar, but I don't think it should be. Your campaign is surging the latest polls. I Saw have you neck and neck with Pete Ricketts in December, was at poll 48, 47. You guys put out information that you raised over $2 million so far, over 700,000 in the last quarter, 20, 25. That's a big number. And I think you smartly have put out that your average donations are very small. I think you said $37. Right. Versus Ricketts, who's talking about tens of thousands or hundreds of thousand dollars. It's a real contrast here. But also, as we talked about years ago when you first came on this show, you've inspired a lot of other people to run. You know, Independent Veterans of America supported you and we're going to probably support you again. We will support you again. And we're looking at 100 other candidates and we've got now, I think, seven independent veterans who are running for Senate. And every one of you can be a fulcrum. We've talked to Todd Achilles and Ty Pickens and Brian Bangs and there are more coming. So can you talk about where the campaign is now and how even more than last time you ran? I think it's much bigger than just about Nebraska. We also had Jesse Ventura on last week. Jesse, you know, reminds people that independence can win. So can you talk about the latest on where the campaign is and where you see it going in the next couple of weeks? Yep.
- [58:05]
Dan Osborne
So we've had, we've had four polls and thank you for the IVA support as well. We've had four polls come out. The first one was all the way back in May that showed us statistically tied. Two more polls came out saying the same thing. And here just recently, we haven't released it yet, but it says the same thing. We're statistically tied. But after that first poll came out that prompted Ricketts to then spend to date over $2 million in the state, which is unprecedented in Nebraska, on TV ads and radio ads and text blasts, advertising at Nebraska football and volleyball games. And speaking of upside down worlds, how the heck is Indiana a football team and now Nebraska is a basketball team? This is crazy.
- [58:51]
Paul Rykoff
I want to come back to that when we get to something good. But you're absolutely right. It is, it is a little upside. But if we were going to have a football team for independence, wouldn't it be Indiana? Wouldn't it be Indy? Right?
- [59:02]
Dan Osborne
Yeah. You know, I'm not, I'm not going to argue with that. I'm not going to argue with that at all. It was, it was fun watching them this year.
- [59:08]
Paul Rykoff
Yeah.
- [59:08]
Dan Osborne
Sure, yeah.
- [59:13]
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- [62:37]
Paul Rykoff
T e n rakuten.com you're like the Indiana politics. You're coming from behind and now you're, you're neck and neck with the big boys. Yeah. Yeah.
- [62:47]
Dan Osborne
So, yeah, going back to Ricketts, it prompted him to spend over 2 million in the state, and it hasn't moved the needle. And we haven't hardly spent anything. You know, I'm investing heavily in our field program and personnel because we're going to win this thing on the ground, you know.
- [63:03]
Paul Rykoff
Yeah.
- [63:03]
Dan Osborne
I'm going to want to be able to compete, of course, with Ricketts for, for, for media points. It takes money to do that for sure. You know, I mean, like I said, his dad's got $4 billion. He could just give him a blank checkbook. Here you go, kid. But yeah, so, so again, the average donation is very low. I'm proud of that. Like I said, Over 25,000 donors, individual donors, rickets, 1,000. 1,000 individual donors. So, you know, that's the contrast, man, that should, people should just look at that right there and just be like, okay, I know who's going to be on the side of the people and who's going to be on the side of the corporations.
- [63:44]
Paul Rykoff
Yeah. And I think it's important for people to look at the last race, too. Right. Because you put up a good fight against Deb Fisher. You were under Resourced. You know, people didn't know who you were, and you still, you know, came pretty damn close. And I remember talking to Bob Carey about it, and he says, boy, it's going to be a damn shame if Osborne loses because we don't have another 5 million. Right. And now we're in a situation where it's only February. You know, you're, you are going to have to compete with him on some level on spending. Right. He's going to try to blow you away and just overspend. But people now know who you are. They know that you're viable. They know that Ricketts is vulnerable. And I think they also can see how the world would have been different if you beat Deb Fisher. Right. You would have been arguably the most powerful person in the Senate right now.
- [64:29]
Dan Osborne
We talked about that real quick.
- [64:31]
Paul Rykoff
Yeah, please, go ahead.
- [64:32]
Dan Osborne
That big, beautiful bill.
- [64:34]
Paul Rykoff
Yeah.
- [64:34]
Dan Osborne
It wasn't passed. I mean, it was a tiebreaker. J.D. vance broke the tie. If I was in the Senate, I would have never passed that bill the way it looked. You know, with the DHS funding and the lion's share of the tax cuts, going to like the Ricketts family. I mean, his family is probably going to make $300 million by the time this big, beautiful bill's done in tax cuts. You know, and the things that they tout. No tax on tips. That's a great idea. The bill falls short, of course, and it's only for three years. And no tax on overtime. I've been saying those things from the beginning, but yeah, and that forum, that's how important, you know, these elections are, that we raise awareness, especially these, these winnable ones.
- [65:24]
Paul Rykoff
Yeah.
- [65:25]
Dan Osborne
So that I just wanted to point.
- [65:26]
Paul Rykoff
Out, I think I talked to you about this last time. You said you would have been a no vote on Pete Hegseth. You're a Navy veteran. You understand, you know, what, what he could have done. Now he's doing it, right? I mean, and then there are other key votes, like the War Powers Act. Right. Congress is laying down their, their constitutional responsibility on everything from Venezuela to Iran. And now we have news today that an airport in Texas is shut down because Mexican cartels may be throwing drones across the border. So I've said this. You know, Trump might hit Mexico by the time this post. That's entirely possible. But can you talk about the danger of Trump with no constitutional guardrails? Right. He's all gas, no brakes, literally hitting multiple countries. And Congress is not even trying to slow him down. So if you're in the Senate, you know, what are you gonna do on these overreaches by the president, especially when it comes to regime change, wars that he's talking about everything from Iran to Cuba.
- [66:22]
Dan Osborne
Well, you signed on the dotted line. I've signed on the dotted line. And if I get elected into the US Senate, I will then take another oath to uphold the Constitution of the United States. We're 250 years into this American experiment, and at the foundation of that is our Constitution. And we are seeing constitutional rights get violated in Minnesota. I mean, that's our inalienable rights. This is what makes America great, is that document. And so many other people have tried to emulate that as their form of government as well, because the framers of that Constitution understood. Right. They'd be rolling over in their grave right now if they saw what was happening. So, yeah, power needs to be with the Congress as dictated through the Constitution of the United States. And everybody that is sworn to uphold it needs to do that. And if they're not doing it, it's up to the people to understand. And, you know, everybody talks about term limits and this and that. Well, you know, we have free and fair elections, and it's up to the people to get the people out of office that aren't upholding the Constitution of the United States.
- [67:34]
Paul Rykoff
Dan, this. This week with Independent Veterans America, we launched a new campaign targeted at veterans that said, don't join ice, join us. We're trying to encourage veterans to get involved in their communities to do what I think is a truly patriotic thing and continue to serve and be aligned with, with independent veterans that you don't have to be a Democrat or Republican. And if you're able, you know, and willing, run for office locally like you have. Jesse Ventura issued a powerful kind of call to arms to other veterans to. To step up and run like he has. He showed it's possible. You've shown it's possible. There are some vets that are still kind of on the sidelines. I think it may be maybe I could run this year. I'm not sure. Do you have a message for all the independent vets out there that are thinking about running for office this year?
- [68:16]
Dan Osborne
Now is the time, and we're running out of it. So if you're. If you're even thinking about it, get a hold of me and we can have meetings. I have meetings with people almost every day that are either running for local dog catcher or, you know, the house. And, you know, I sit down with them and I sit down with. With my wife and their wives to talk about the hardships of how hard it is to run. But, you know what? Doing the hard thing is the right thing. And, you know, we need people to step up that have served this country, that love this country and love the basis. Basis of its foundation and want to do something about it. So my message to them is, is if you're. If you're still on the Fence about it. Get a hold of me. You know, go to my website, osborne4senate.com and, you know, email me on there, and let's set up a time to talk, and we'll figure out a way to get you some foundational support as well and some help.
- [69:21]
Paul Rykoff
Hear, hear. That's a good man. And reach out to us at Independent Veterans of America as well. Reach out to me. You know, we got some tools, we got the resources, help you get trained up. And if you don't want to run, we still need you fighting for things like, you know, equal voting opportunity for independents with open primaries, fighting for other veterans who are stepping up to run, not just Dan, but across the country. It's what's necessary. All right, Dan, I gotta let you go in a minute, but first, let's go to something good.
- [69:46]
Dan Osborne
Something good.
- [69:51]
Paul Rykoff
We always end with something good. And I'm gonna do a twofer here. First of all, J.D. vance is telling Olympians to shut up, that they shouldn't speak out. And I think that's deeply un American. But they continue to speak out in a way that I think is deeply American. And I want to shout out one of them, Jessie Diggins, who is the most decorated cross country skier in U.S. history. And she posted a message right before the Olympics that I want to read. Excuse me, I've been reading a couple of these, but she wrote this. I want to make sure you know who I'm racing for when I get to start, get to the start line at the Olympics. I'm racing for an American people who stand for love, for acceptance, for compassion, honesty and respect for others. I do not stand for hate or violence. I decided who I'm racing for every single day. And I want to live up to my values for everyone out there. Caring for others, protecting their neighbors, and meeting people with love. Every single step is for you. You are the ones who make me proud to carry the flag. And I hope I can bring you joy over these next few weeks. That's Jesse Diggins, one of the great American athletes. She is something good. And before I wrap on something good, I'm going to shout out your Nebraska basketball team, man. They're 21 and three. They're number seven overall. I mean, they're competing with the likes of Michigan and others. If folks haven't been watching Nebraska, basketball is for real and there's something good. But over to you, my friend, Dan Osborne. What do you got? There's something good.
- [71:12]
Dan Osborne
Yeah, that's a badass group of guys. You know, there's Something. Something good that I want to state and put out into the Ethereum is. You know, I mentioned earlier the Internet's. It's not a real place. I don't even know half of these are bots or if they're Chinese bots. We don't even know. Right? But you go online and you look at comment sections and you are thinking, man, we are in trouble. And we're divided and we are. I'm not trying to downplay that, but in my experience in going around Nebraska and knocking doors, I knock on doors that people still have Trump signs out, and we just go and knock on all the doors and talk to all the people. And when you actually start talking about the issues and policies, you know, we agree on a heck of a lot more than we disagree. So keep the faith, keep the hope going. Because there's a heck of a lot more of us voters than there are billionaires in the world, too, that I believe those are the ones that are truly trying to keep us divided. And they'll. They'll come up with any topic to keep us not talking about the Epstein files and everything else that they're on the chopping block for. So keep the hope, keep the faith, because we are pretty united, I think.
- [72:32]
Paul Rykoff
Hear, hear. That is something good. There's a lot more of us than there are of them. And, you know, this is kind of like a preview. Dan Osborne's in Washington this week, fighting a good fight and representing independence. And imagine how much different it's going to be if he's there a year from now as a United States senator representing the great state of Nebraska and representing 45% of Americans who are independents and representing Democrats and Republicans who want to meet this moment. So you continue to inspire, my friend. Thank you for leading the fight. Thank you for inspiring other independents, especially to meet this moment, rooting for your Huskers here. And I hope you'll come back and join us again on the show soon and give us an update on how things are going, man.
- [73:12]
Dan Osborne
Yeah, I appreciate it, brother. Thank you.
- [73:14]
Paul Rykoff
You got it, man. Give him hell out there. All right, folks, there you have it. Dan Osborne back on the show. He's been here many times before, long before he became a national figure. We had him here, which is what I want to do with this show. I want to elevate voices that are meeting the moment and represent the future. I will continue at least once a week. I'm going to try to highlight important voices from the independent movement, people who are challenging the status quo. And both parties today, you heard from Dan Osborne. Last week you heard from Governor Jesse Ventura. If you haven't heard that one, go back and check it out. Especially the video clips that we've been posting on social media are getting more responses than we've ever gotten before, in part because Jesse's pretty awesome to listen to, but also because people want to hear from more independent leaders. And I'm going to continue to bring them to you. If you've got one you want to suggest, hit me up on social media, hit me up on our website and continue to spread the word. Tomorrow we're going to dig deeper on how ice is impacting kids, how this environment is impacting our kids. If you have a kid, if you care about kids, you don't want to miss this show tomorrow with Anya Kamenetics, who's back on the show to help us break it down. All right, I will not be on News Nation. I will not be on Ms. Now. I will not be on CNN tonight in part because it's wall to wall Savannah Guthrie coverage, Nancy Guthrie coverage, and it's also a lot of Bondi fireworks, Epstein stuff. But I will be coaching some basketball and I will be watching a ton of basketball, which I recommend you do as well. Not just Nebraska's team, but there's a lot of good college and pro basketball that's happening now that can kind of fill that void as we do without football for the first time this year. And we are daily now. If you don't know, be sure to let people know. We hit number 36 on the charts. Keep spreading the word. You can help us chip away at some of those other more partisan and corporate voices that you see in the top of the podcast charts. We are challenging them. So follow me and independent Americans everywhere. Subscribe for free right now wherever you're listening to my still gravelly voice. Thanks for bearing with me on that, folks. I'm working on it. I'm trying to arrest it, but I'm also trying to keep bringing the fire every day. So subscribe on YouTube, especially on Apple podcasts. Leave us a rating. Go ahead and do that and you can help support Dan Osborne and other voices like it that I'm trying to bring you. And you can always get independent merch at our website and join our Patreon community. Be sure to subscribe and let people know because America is more divided than ever before. But here at Independent Americans, we are working to change that, to bring light, to contrast the heat of all the other political and news shows. Kind of like our brave Olympians who are meeting the moment and of course, like Dan Osborne. So if you're now among the 45% of Americans who are independent, this is your show and your place to hear from independent leaders like Dan Osborne, like Brian Bangs, like Angus King, and like so many others that I'm gonna bring you in the weeks to come. Because our independent movement is the hope for the future. Country over party, people over politics, light over heat, challenging that status quo in a very, very big way and demanding accountability. Because our movement is growing and our hope that we're bringing is the oxygen of democracy. I hope you enjoyed this episode with Dan Osborne. If you did share it far and wide, especially newcomers who are Dan Osborne supporters. Please share us, share this far and wide and help us find other Dan Osbornes, recruit other Dan Osbornes and elect other Dan Osbornes and invite others to declare their independence. Now is the time. And stay vigilant, my friend, because eternal vigilance is the price of freedom and it's a price we got to pay right now. And no, you're not alone in your vigilance. We're all vigilant and we're all in this together, more and more by the day. I'm your host, Paul Rykoff. Thank you for tuning in to independent Americans. Thank you for supporting this movement. I will see you tomorrow. Happy hump day. Go USA and stay vigilant, America. Stay vigilant.
- [77:02]
Dan Osborne
And when you wake it's time to.
- [77:04]
Paul Rykoff
Grow and it's not cool to believe in school but if I can say one thing I've seen the children of the revolution and the good trouble they can bring. He says the red and blue are dead and independent is an attitude an island in the sea of rhetoric. Power by righteous media.
- [77:33]
Representative Delia Ramirez
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- [77:40]
Paul Rykoff
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- [77:51]
Representative Delia Ramirez
And after your trip.
- [77:52]
Paul Rykoff
Because a great trip starts with peace.
- [77:54]
Representative Delia Ramirez
Of mind and maybe a good playlist. But we've got the peace of mind part covered.
- [78:01]
Dan Osborne
Lifelock, how can I help?
- [78:03]
Paul Rykoff
The IRS said I filed my return, but I haven't.
- [78:06]
LifeLock Representative
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- [78:09]
Commercial Announcer
What do I do?
- [78:10]
Paul Rykoff
My refund though. I'm freaking out.
- [78:12]
Dan Osborne
Don't worry, I can fix this.
- [78:13]
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- [78:19]
Paul Rykoff
I'm so relieved.
- [78:20]
Commercial Announcer
No problem.
- [78:20]
Paul Rykoff
I'll be with you every step of the way.
- [78:22]
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- [78:31]
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