← Independent Americans with Paul Rieckhoff
Independent Americans with Paul Rieckhoff
Trump Attacks Journalism: Don Lemon and Georgia Fort Arrested. Plus: More Epstein Files Drop.
00:39:46
This rapid fire episode is an intense real‑time situation report from Times Square on one of the wildest Fridays of 2026 so far. Paul Rieckhoff digs into the federal arrest of Don Lemon and Minnesota journalist Georgia Fort after church protests, and why Trump’s push to criminalize journalism and protest crosses a dangerous new line in his war on the free press—making clear that if they can be targeted, so can any podcaster, reporter, or citizen who dares to speak out.
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- [00:00]
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- [00:30]
Paul Rykoff
Here's something I really want to talk about. A lot of folks are ripping into the legal arguments and the indictment. Here's the bigger picture. Don Lemon's in jail and Donald Trump is not playing by your rules. He doesn't care about your norms. He doesn't care about your laws. He is all gas, no breaks.
- [00:59]
Protester/Onlooker
Foreign.
- [01:03]
Paul Rykoff
Welcome to Independent Americans. Welcome to episode 4 29. I'm your host, Paul Rykoff. I am coming to you from New York City, usa. I am in Times Square where I just came off the air from recording a conversation with Katie Tur on Ms. Now as the news continues to break because it is a wild and funky and fierce Friday. It is Friday, January 30th. We are almost done with January and the weather is cold. Cold. So damn cold. As Greenland's Revenge continues. Greenland is getting back at us for messing with them by inflicting the worst cold some of us have ever seen. And because 2026 is not crazy enough already, now we got a bomb cyclone. Yeah, a bomb cyclone or bombo Genesis might bring a few inches of snow here in New York City, but it's going to be cold as hell, which is what most of January has felt like because the news and the chaos and the politics continues to come at you. And I'm going to try to warm you up today. And I do have some somewhat disappointing news. Our scheduled guests, Jesse the Body, the Governor Ventura, cannot be with us today, but for good reason. As a testament to who Jesse is, they notified us late last night that Jesse had to do a fundraiser in honor of Renee Goode and Alex Preddy in Minneapolis. He's at that fundraiser right now instead of being with us, but he promises to be with us soon. And I will bring you him in what should be the most extended, exclusive conversation you've heard. So stay tuned for that. Jesse the Body Ventura will be coming. It gives you something to look forward to over the next couple of days. We've also got Friday football. It's just going to be me and you talking about the Pro Bowl. Yeah, there's a Pro Bowl. We're going to talk about that. And I'm gonna try to keep you warm and help you deal with this bomb cyclone and Greenland's revenge, which continues to hit my vocal cords. But on this especially important Friday, I'm gonna bring you the five eyes. I bring you in every single show, you know, independence, integrity, information, inspiration, and impact. If you're not watching on YouTube, be sure to do that. And of course, subscribe and share everywhere you are, because there is a ton happening today, and we have got to stay vigilant. All right, Friday used to be a day when in politics, a lot of bad news would get dumped, news that you wanted out there because everybody was headed out for the weekend, trying to punch out from work. They want to spend time with their families and watch sports. Feels like every day is a Friday news dump. But the number one story, the thing that I think is our top topic. And something that you got to focus on. If you're not angry, you're not paying attention to the fact that federal agents have arrested Don Lemon, allegedly over the Minnesota church protest. He was arrested sometime on Friday, in addition to another reporter, Georgia Ford. I'm going to share some of the video about that in a second, but this is really, really important. Trump's war on the press and the truth has now just opened a new and very significant front and a new and significant target. Don Lemon. Don Lemon's a guy I've known for decades. Back when he was on cnn. We've done countless interviews. He's been a fierce critic of the president. And now the president has put him in jail. Trump has put him in jail. President Mayhem himself has marked the Don Lemon and Georgia, and they are now somewhere being held. So bigger picture that I always want to get you focused on after Twitter, pbs, npr, the Pentagon press, course, cbs, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Kimmel, the Washington Post, the Stars and Stripes. Remember the Stars and Stripes. Now it's Don Lemon, and this is a big one. It's an exceptionally damaging new line to cross. Now, look, maybe Don Lemon shouldn't have gone into that church. Trump is choosing to seize on the moment to arrest him and send a message. Now, some might argue Don Lemon is not a journalist, but Don Lemon says he's a journalist. And in 2026, so do countless other people. They consider themselves journalists. That means that Trump can now come after anyone who calls himself a journalist on any show, any podcast, any substack, any writer or anyone else who speaks out that he targets. Any Content producer. Now, obviously, that means he could come after me. And if you're listening to this on social media or you're posting on social media, or if you've spoken out in public in any way, he could come after you. Keep that in mind. He wants to shut down opposition, and Don Lemon is the latest casualty of the fourth estate in the fight to preserve and defend our democracy. And this could be the first of an immeasurably dangerous and terrible new wave. And as I mentioned, Don Lemon isn't the only one that they arrested. I want to play this video for you from Georgia Ford, independent journalist and vice president of the Minnesota NABJ chapter, who was arrested by federal agents this morning at her home.
- [06:19]
Georgia Ford
You guys, I wanted to alert the public that agents are at my door right now. They're saying that they were able to go before a grand jury sometime, I guess, in the last 24 hours, and that they have a warrant for my arrest. I've talked to my attorney, and I'm being advised to go with them, I guess, down to Whipple. And my children are here. They're impacted by this. This is all stemming from the fact that I filmed a protest as a member of the media. We are supposed to have our constitutional right of the freedom to film, to be a member of the press. I don't feel like I have my First Amendment right as a member of the press, because now federal agents are at my door arresting me for filming the church protest a few weeks ago. Again, I don't have a long time here, you guys, but I wanted you to know, for me, agents are at my door right now. My attorney has spoken with them. I did send a relative outside to talk to them. They're showing some type of documentation, apparently that they got an indictment from a grand jury. I knew that I was on a defendant's list. I did not publish it because it was under seal. And so we've done everything that we can to try and abide by, you know, the advice of our. Our attorneys. But right now, you guys, I wanted you to know I'm going to have to hop off here and surrender to agents as a member of the press. I filmed the church protest a few weeks ago, and now I'm being arrested for that. It's hard to understand how we have a constant. A constitution, constitutional rights, when you can just be arrested for being a member of the press. You and we. We've seen all these violations. All right, you guys, I gotta go. They're knocking.
- [08:27]
Protester/Onlooker
She's coming right now.
- [08:29]
Georgia Ford
Give me. Give me one second. All right, guys, you want to.
- [08:35]
Paul Rykoff
All right, this is a predictable next phase of Trump's unfolding plan, and it's very likely just a start of opening a new front for Trump in the war on media and the war on truth. Don't believe Trump. Don't believe the government. Believe your eyes. And check out this other video that Georgia ford posted around 6:30am when federal agents came to her door. Check this out.
- [09:07]
Protester/Onlooker
Yes. Okay.
- [09:21]
Melissa Benashai
Okay.
- [09:22]
Protester/Onlooker
Well, this is really scary. There's kids in the house. You guys have not been really friendly in the community. And to me, this seems a little. Can I finish, sir? This seems. Can I finish? Can I get your.
- [09:38]
Paul Rykoff
Get your phone?
- [09:39]
Protester/Onlooker
This seems a little bit aggressive to have all these cars in our cul de sac. Two, three agents, and now I saw the one disappear to the back. So to me, this is a little aggressive to just serve a warrant. Slide the warrant. Let me see the warrant. Okay. And that, to me, what I have been told is not a judicial warrant. That has me to have to open the door for you now.
- [10:24]
Paul Rykoff
I hope that's not a video I'm going to have to post one day, but I might. And if I do, you'll hear about it here or you'll hear about it somewhere. But if you care about America, democracy and freedom, you have to push back against this now. The soul and the foundation of our country is under attack. And like Renee Goode and Alex Preddy and George Retz and Leon Ramos, you could be next. Don't believe the government. Believe your eyes. Free Georgia Ford. Free Don Lemon. Free America. And stay vigilant, America, because there will be no breaks and no days off. There will be no Friday floating, because Trump is smashing opposition. That's what he's doing here. He's like Godzilla, smashing everything in his way. And his thirst and quest for power and control. And here's something I really want to talk about. A lot of folks are ripping into the legal arguments and the indictment. Here's the bigger picture. Don Lemon's in jail, and Donald Trump is not playing by your rules. He doesn't care about your norms. He doesn't care about your laws. He is all gas, no brakes. And I was on with Ari Melber, who said something very smart on Ms. Now, he said that Trump is trying to criminalize journalism, and that is exactly who. Right? He's trying to criminalize and demonize journalism. He's also trying to criminalize and demonize protesting. Think about that, especially in the context of Renee Goode and others. He's trying to criminalize and demonize recording ICE on your cell phone. Think about that. He's continuing to say that people who are recording are obstructing ice. And you see these ICE examples all the time. But he's trying to criminalize all of it. And he's on plan. And a protest in a church where they're alleging Don Lemon committed some kind of crime. We've talked about this protest. I don't think it was smart. I don't think it was advisable. I don't think it was a crime. Maybe there was a trespassing crime. Maybe somebody was hurt. We could have that out in a trial and in a public hearing. But the fact that he publicly and specifically targeted a journalist is very, very important. And they picked this church. They were waiting for a moment like this. A protest at a church is a perfect, animating moment for Trump and his far right base, for the Christian right, for Christian white nationalists, and for anyone who's down with the Trump cause. Because remember, and I'm going to continue to reiterate, Trump wants to invoke the Insurrection Act. He wants big protests. He wants friction. Yesterday on this show, if you missed it, Joe Walsh said Trump wants violence. And I think that's right. Check out that show yesterday with Joe Walsh, if you missed it. But remind you, I want to remind you, the 11th Airborne Corps of the active duty military is on standby right now in Alaska to be deployed to Minneapolis. They're always on standby. They've been on standby. And last week, this week, actually, the Freedom Caucus publicly endorsed his use of the Insurrection Act. So as many people celebrate the protests in Minneapolis, which I do, Trump is hoping there'll be a spark. Trump is hoping there'll be violence. Trump is hoping that the protesters will go too far so he can respond on plan with the Insurrection act in Minneapolis, which would of course be the precursor to disrupting and potentially blocking elections in the fall. He knows free and fair elections in the fall mean another impeachment, another indictment, and probably criminal prosecution for him and everybody. So he does not want to have free and fair elections this fall, but he does want to continue to be all gas, no brakes. And we need to, especially now, stay vigilant beyond America's borders.
- [14:02]
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- [15:04]
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- [17:02]
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- [17:34]
Paul Rykoff
Because While most of America's eyes are focused on the Epstein files, which were also released today, more on that in a second. Or or focused on Minneapolis or focused on Don Lemon, our military is focused on Iran because Trump also doesn't care about Congress, the Constitution or anything that might slow him down. He continues to be all gas, no brakes. He wants to dominate the Western Hemisphere. He wants regime change in Cuba like he had in Venezuela, and he said he wants it in Iran. And as our friend Dan Lamonth pointed out on X, you should follow him and follow CentCom US Central Command. They are telegraphing their punches. They posted a picture of an F A18E Super Hornet attached to Strike Fighter Squadron 151 launching from the flight deck of the USS Abraham Lincoln while conducting routine flight operations in the Arabian Sea. And they wrote, abraham Lincoln is deployed to support security and stability, stability within the Middle east region. They are telling you that they have moved the pieces in place to strike Iran. They moved pieces back away from Venezuela and they are now aligned around Iran. Because you have to find out here and on social media and from folks like Dan Lamont, because there sure as hell is no regular Friday Pentagon press preview happening today or anymore. They just don't do them anymore. So keep on your radar. It might happen before this show even posts, but keep on your radar throughout the weekend and the next couple of days. Just like I warned you around Venezuela, that the table is now set for Iran, as it was with Venezuela. Trump can hit anytime he wants, anytime today, anytime over the weekend, anytime next week without congressional approval or public support. All gas, no brakes. The most important story in the world is still and until further notice, that Trump can do anything he wants with the most powerful military the world has ever seen and nothing is stopping him. Anything else is just friction. That includes the release today of millions of pages of the Epstein documents. More files, videos, photographs have been released now, again mentioning folks like Howard Lutnick and Bill Gates and others. We'll find out over the next couple of hours. Because reporters are sifting through the material. If I were going to release a bunch of stuff that I don't want people to see, yeah, I would do it on Friday. But I do think it's important to note that that's not necessarily a distraction. He's got to get that friction out, so he might as well drop it on Friday. At the same day he arrests Don Lemon, at the same day, there are massive protests, and right before he hits Iran, he wants to continue to go forward and not deal with anything that causes him friction. It's not a distraction, it's just friction. So he's blowing past it and going forward. All right, there's other news you might have blown past today that I want to hit on quickly. Luigi Mangione will not face the death penalty. Federal judge has ruled in New York that the guy who assassinated UnitedHealthcare chief executive in 2024 cannot seek the death penalty. In other news, Trump has named Kevin Warsh to be his next Fed chair. He's a conservative economist. He wants to replace Jerome Powell, who bravely spoke out against Trump and has faced a barrage of attacks. But guess who Kevin Walsh is. He's a guy who was also named in the Epstein files that were just released. So I'm sure we'll get a little more on that. Don't believe the government. Believe your eyes. And that is especially true when it comes to how President Mayhem continues to send chills around the world, and especially how he continues to ramp up the execution and the utilization of ice. ICE continues to run rampant across America. In Minneapolis, in Maine, in Phoenix, Arizona. And every day, more disturbing videos and more disturbing news. This one from Colorado. Durango, Colorado. I want to play this. This is a good reason to check us on YouTube if you don't already. But I'm going to play this. I'm going to play as many of them as possible, because you need to see them, you need to share them, show them to people who don't believe that ICE is a menace, an unconstitutional menace.
- [21:40]
Protester/Onlooker
Oh, dude, you can't take my phone. You cannot. Oh, that's illegal, sir. That's condemned. Hey. Hey, hey. Hey. Stop that. Hey, we need to get off of her right now. Get the fuck off her. You stole her phone. Call 911. Someone call 911. Call 911. Someone call the police. That is assault. That is kidnapping of her phone. What's your name? What's your name? That was evil. What's your name? Someone call 911. You legally have to identify your. Identify. What's your Name? What's your name? I. Shame. Shame. Shame.
- [22:42]
Paul Rykoff
A masked ICE agent is seen in the video snatching a phone from an elderly woman during a peaceful protest. Then he physically attacks her and throws her down a hill. Other federal agents are helping her before they hide behind a fence. This is the latest. Now they're beating up old ladies. They are literally beating up old ladies. Could be your mom, could be your grandma, could be your wife, or it could be your husband or your kid. Yeah, the impact on our kids is really severe. This week I talked to a good friend who was born in Mexico and she has a son who's the same age as my son. They're both 10 years old. And she says that here in New York City, her 10 year old boy doesn't want to leave the house because he's worried he's going to get arrested by the police. He sleeps in her bed because he wants to sleep next to her and he wants her to know that he's there to protect her. There's no dad around in his family and every day he worries about his mom and she worries about him. And she cried to me in tears like so many other families are experiencing because she kept saying to me, he's just a kid. He's just a kid. And that's so important for us to remember that our kids are scared and our kids are scarred and we need to look out, not just for our own kids, but for all kids out there. And remember that for when it comes to ice, kids are not off limits. Check this shit out. If you're not angry, you're not paying attention about this. All right? So in this video, a woman is standing between ICE and her mother holding a four year old child. Four year old agents tackle her, kneel on her back and drag her away through the snow. According to the Post, the mother and child she tried to protect are still missing, presumably disappeared somewhere into ICE custody. The incident occurred in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and Elizabeth lost her own daughter to cancer just eight years ago. And that pain didn't break her. Instead, it strengthened her instinct to protect the vulnerable, to act when others stay silent. That maternal love and protective courage are what fueled her in that moment, the Post description explains. People continue to step up and be helpers, and they continue to be smashed by ice. That's what happened to Alex Preddy. That's what happened to Renee Goode. Because the culture of ice, I'm gonna keep saying it is rotten to the core. It's a culture of unprofessional disrespect. It's built on a scarred and broken, flawed formation that they continue to scale. Every day we see more and more examples. And I wanna say this. It's not salvageable. I think it's a lot like Guantanamo or Rikers Prison. It's just at some point it's not salvageable because the trust is so broken with the American people, it's shattered beyond repair. So defund ice, shut it down. And keep in mind that it's happening all over the country and in more places every day, including Portland, Maine, where a friend of mine posted something from the Portland Press Herald where agents shattered a window leaving a one month old baby and the mother in the car. After a Portland arrest. The federal immigration agents left the infant and the broken glass after detaining a person from guinea who had no criminal record. There's a baby in the car. They keep saying the baby's in the car. And the agents shatter the driver's side window. Glass sprays all over the baby seat. And the husband was arrested and put into an unmarked car and disappeared. And officers left. And Nene Barry, who doesn't have a driver's license and speaks little English, was left alone inside the car with her infant. She said, he did everything for us and now he's not here. What am I going to do alone with a one month old baby in the cold? She said, speaking in French. They don't give a shit if it's an old lady, they don't give a shit if it's a veteran. They don't give a shit if you're a cop. They don't give a shit if you're a baby. Because the attacks continue and the expansion of the attacks continue. Another example from Minneapolis that I may or may not be able to play. But AP journalists were in Minneapolis covering ICE actions and preparing the document. When the journalists got out of the car, the officers pushed them, threatened them with arrest and told them to get back in the car. Despite the fact that they're journalists. I mean, they don't do this to journalists on a battlefield. But they continue to be undisciplined, unprofessional, un American, unacceptable. The culture of ICE is rotten to the core. And remember, don't believe in government. Believe your eyes. They're detaining citizens, cops, veterans, kids, and now old ladies. And this is where we are now, America. I'm going to say it in every show that I have to. They can do it to Renee Goode, they can do it to Chung Li, Scott Tao. They could do it to, to William Vermeer. They can do it to Liam Ramos. They could do it to Don Lemon. They could do it to you. You're not angry. You're not paying attention. So put ICE on trial and shut them down and stay vigilant. All right. We haven't talked about Greenland in a while, but the people there are still pissed off as we go into the weekend. Venezuela not in the news right now, but we continue to snatch their oil. Very little oversight from Congress on any of this. Want to keep Cuba on your radar as always. There's, of course, Gaza and Israel. And National Guard deployments are something here in the US that are related to our military that I want to highlight because Dan Lamoth, the great reporter from the Washington Post, go back and check out my conversations with him, highlighted something that I think folks forget about. The footprint that Trump has put out there continues to expand and hold. And the number of national guard members in D.C. area as of yesterday, Washington, D.C. was 2,687. And the costs are adding up. That means with 2,900 troops or so, that the cost was 223 million from August to December and will cost $55 million per month onward. That means $880 million through the end of 2026. That's just for this group of troops in D.C. i think it just shows that Trump doesn't care. He's all gas, no brakes, and he doesn't care what it costs because he wants to make sure that he can control things and that what you're seeing in D.C. where the troops have now calcified, where they got an extension from the federal, from, from, from the judge to keep those troops there after, remember two National Guard troops were shot. People forget that the National Guard troops are federalized and still in D.C. very, very important to keep in mind because Trump has control of our entire military from across the US all the way to the Middle East. But he's of course, not using it on Ukraine. But there might be somewhat of a glimmer of hope of good news in Ukraine as we go into this very cold Friday. It's day 1437 of Russia's full scale invasion of Ukraine. And yesterday Trump announced that Zelensky and Putin kind of have an energy ceasefire in Ukraine. Putin says that he got. Sorry, check that. Trump. I confused him sometimes. Trump said he got Putin to agree to halt strikes against energy infrastructure for a week. He noted that people are freezing in Kyiv. And he said he worked the deal and he got Putin to layoff for A week. We will see. Zelensky says that there have been no energy attacks on Ukraine just in the last night, which is good news. He's also said that he won't attack Russian energy sites in response during this period. But this ceasefire, at least with regard to energy strikes, is very, very fragile. But maybe it provides some relief for the people of Ukraine who are freezing much more than we are anywhere in the U.S. whenever our bomb cyclone is like here in the U.S. it's like nothing compared to what the people of Ukraine face when they have the cold and the wind and the ferocity of the weather, compounded by Shahid drones, missiles and rockets every single night. But keep an eye on this space and definitely always support Ukraine. Go to American Veterans for Ukraine for more. Follow our friend Tim Mack, who's been on the show, and follow and read the Kyiv Independent. I talk about it a lot, but they are an independent news source and they are independent Ukrainians that are pushing forward every day. And we in independent America are want to support them and salute them. All right, speaking of independence, a couple of key issues that I want to run by you. We talk a lot about open Primaries. We've had our friend John Updike on the show. And as we continue to defend our democracy in a number of ways, that includes our elections, we need open primaries. And there is a new bipartisan bill to open the primaries that was introduced in Maryland. Maryland's closed primary has shut out over 1 million independent voters. That's 25% of all voters and it's the fastest growing sector of the electorate. Our friends at open primaries continue to focus on this. Open primaries launched a groundbreaking legal challenge on behalf of five independent Marylands in collaboration with the former state lieutenant governor Boyd Rutherford. This is really important because it would allow 1 million independents, the right to select a party in a ballot without having to affiliate with the party they can vote in the primaries. It's modeled after similar open primary bills that were successful in Maine and in New Mexico. So let us vote. Maryland is pushing hard. As a reminder, public support is overwhelmingly in favor of open primaries. 71% of Americans support open primaries. And the ones that don't probably just don't know enough about it. But watch this space. We will continue to push. And I want to call out my friend, Governor Wes Moore, who is a Democrat who's been on this show who has a lot of appeal to independence. He has been silent on this issue and we need him to speak out. My man, my buddy, my friend Wes. We need you to stand with independence and support open primaries. It will be critical in uniting the people across Maryland. And you can be a brave Democrat and being among the first to do this in a way you have been in some other places. So come on, the secret is out.
- [33:05]
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- [34:05]
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- [35:04]
Melissa Benashai
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- [35:33]
Protester/Onlooker
Love you.
- [35:33]
Paul Rykoff
Bye.
- [35:34]
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- [36:04]
Paul Rykoff
This show, we'd love to have you talk about it. In the meantime, folks, continue to check out open primaries and support open primaries in Maryland and across the country. All right, in culture, some sad breaking news. The great Catherine O' Hara has died at the age of 71. One of the funniest ladies in Hollywood. I feel like I grew up with her movies. Home Alone, Schitt's Creek, Beetlejuice. She was a legend and a true American icon. The great Catherine o' Hara has died and tributes continue to come in from across America. If you need a break from the cold and from the politics and from the ferocity of this weekend, go watch a great Catherine o' Hara movie and pour a little out for her. A true American icon and a very, very funny lady who, who did a lot to keep us laughing and especially in the recent hard times. Our condolences to our family and rest in peace to the great Catherine o'.
- [36:53]
Protester/Onlooker
Hara.
- [36:55]
Paul Rykoff
All right, finally in sports, it's super bowl time for the next two weeks and I'm going to do Friday football, just me and you in a second. But I want you to know that there's no way it's not going to get contaminated by Trump and his minions and the politics, just like everything else in America. Cue our old friend, Senator redneck Tommy Tuberville, radical extremist hack from the state of Alabama, who continues to strive to be the super bowl champion of the stupid. Check this clip out, folks. Let's go to the videotape. Unfortunately, we've got, I call it the woke bowl because we're getting more and more woke and we got bad bunny or bad rabbit at halftime. I'll be watching the tpusa a halftime show, but it just unfortunate we've gotten to this Point. Yeah. You, yeah, you went to the game last year with the president in New.
- [37:43]
Plexaderm Advertiser
Orleans, but neither of you are going this year.
- [37:46]
Paul Rykoff
You don't want to go to the Woke Bowl, I guess. All right, Senator Redneck, unfortunately we got the Woke bowl because getting more and more woke. Well, you know what, man, we're so sick of your shit. You are undoubtedly the most partisan, the most ridiculous, the most disgraceful member of the U.S. senate. You are a disgrace to the state of Alabama. You are a disgrace to the sport of football. And I don't think too many folks would want you to coach their team nowadays. And a lot of folks don't want you to be their senator. So do us a favor, Senator Redneck. Take the next couple of weeks off. Go get a nice bath and stay away from the Super Bowl. All right? We do not have Jesse Ventura this week, which as I mentioned to you, is going to be a makeup call. We're going to get a makeup call. We're going to get him back here soon. But we do have Friday football. I don't want to end a Friday, especially during football season, without a special Friday football. We taking the stage. Okay? The super bowl is in two weeks and next Friday we will have a fantastic pre super bowl football Friday with Rachel Maddow, who if you don't know, is a Rhodes scholar and if you don't know, also a very, very, very, very, very, very big Patriots fan. I am a very big Giants fan and as I mentioned on this show, I think with Willie Geist years ago when our teams play, we bet that the loser would have to wear the winner's team jersey on television. She honored that bet as a testament to her character. She wore an Eli Manning jersey during an entire 9pm broadcast of her show on MSNBC. She will be back next Friday. We do not have traditional football this weekend, but we do have the Pro Bowl. All right. The Pro bowl has gone through a lot of iterations and I don't love a lot of it. But now it's moved to Tuesday night and it's going to be a flag football game. Let me tell you why this is interesting and why I think it's exciting. Flag football is fantastic. If you don't know. I've coached my boys in flag football, my 10 year old and my 6 year old for the last three or four years. Flag football is one of the fastest growing sports on the planet, especially for women. Women's flag football is super exciting and maybe the big moment that you don't know is happening is in the Olympics in Los Angeles. In just over a year, flag football will be an Olympic sport and NFL players are going to participate. So they're going to have the skills competition and then you will have NFC versus afc. In flag football. For the nfc, you got Matt Stafford. For the Rams, you got Dak Prescott. For the running backs, you got Jameer Gibbs. For The Lions, Christian McCaffrey and Bijan Robinson, the incredible running back for the Falcons. The wide receivers, you got Puka Nakua, you got Amon St. Brown. The tight ends, you got Terry McBride from the Cardinals. And George Kittle was selected, but unfortunately will be out. Still sending love to our friend George Kittle. On the defense, you got Mika Parsons if he's healthy, Aiden Hutchinson if he's healthy, Jalen Carter. But that's the nfc. On the AFC side, quarterback, you got Josh Allen from the Bills. Actually, you probably won't because he's hurt, but you got Justin Herbert. Drake May won't be able to play. Joe Flacco, I think, was added to the roster. So that should be fun. You got Jonathan Taylor as the running back, Jamar Chase, Nico Collins, Brock Bowers, the fantastic tight end for the Raiders, if he's healthy. I don't know if a lot of these guys are healthy, to be honest with you. On defense, you got Max Crosby, Miles Garrett, Chris Jones, Pat Certain, and you got a bunch of kickers. Steve Young is going to serve as the AFC's head coach. I don't know why that is, but nevertheless, you got AFC versus nfc. And here's what I'll tell you. I'm taking the nfc. I'm taking the NFC because I think Stafford is the best quarterback in the game. I think Sam Darnold had the best game last weekend, but Matt Stafford is the best quarterback in the game. He should be the mvp. And I think he's going to lead the NFC to the title of the Pro Bowl Championship. I don't know what they get when they win flag football, but I'll tell you what, if you need a break, go check it out because it's going to be electrifying, especially when they can't hit. The game opens up and it's very fun. So there it is, my pick. I am picking the NFC to beat the AFC in flag football. Check it out on Tuesday for a very special football Friday. Something good.
- [41:57]
Protester/Onlooker
Oh, something sweet.
- [42:00]
Melissa Benashai
Feel the fire.
- [42:01]
Paul Rykoff
All right, folks, something good. Yesterday I talked about Bruce Springsteen and I thought that was a really important something good. And I want to remind you that especially in Times like this, you need to find joy. I try to give you something good because joy is a form of resistance. You can't let them fuck with your joy people. And I'm going to continue to try to bring you joyful things. And I want to shout out somebody that is really motivating me and showing me something good. And it's the protesters in Minneapolis. It is fucking cold out there. It is cold when I just walk from a building to the subway. If I'm out there picking up my kids and and these people, thousands of people, maybe hundreds of thousands of people are out there in the streets protesting. I love Minneapolis. I've been there a number of times. I love the state. I love the people. Tim Walsh is a friend and I hope will come on this show. We go way back. He's a National Guard vet, so we have that connection. He used to be a leader on the House Veterans Affairs Committee and we did a lot of good work for veterans together. Al Franken is a guy I've known. And of course, Jesse Ventura from Minnesota is probably out there right now in the snow screaming his head off and cutting a promo. But if you need something good and especially if you're inside, turn on that TV over the weekend and look at the protesters who are out there exercising their First Amendment rights. A lot of folks who have never protested before because now is a time to speak out and now is a time to celebrate people who are meeting this moment in whatever way they can. So we see you protesters and on this special Friday, this cold and fierce Friday, you are something good. All right, folks, it's been a very big week. We had started out with Dr. Vin Gupta, we had Joe Walsh, we missed Jesse Ventura, but you got me. Next weekend we got Chuck Todd. Coming up, we have Biana Golodriga, the brilliant media voice that understands national affairs and has joined us before. We will have Rachel Maddow. We may have other surprises and I think we're going to land Jesse, so hang in there. I'm sorry. If you tune in today hoping to get the gov, he will be back another time soon. And instead you got me. And we continue to drive forward and meet this moment like a snowplow cutting through the ice and cutting through the Bullshit. We hit 36 on the charts recently. Help us keep that going. You can do that by following subscribing and sharing. Check out the Independent Americans merch. Join our Patreon community. Find us on substack. Be sure to subscribe wherever you listen. Let me take a Breath. All right, hit that subscribe button. Do me a solid. Come on, do it. All right. Thank you. America's more divided than ever before, but you see the unification happening. You see people aligning from different backgrounds, from far left protesters to far right gun advocates. They are coming together in this moment. And here at Independent Americans, we want to stoke that. We want to move it forward. We want to work to bring light to contrast to heat. If you are among the 45% of Americans who are independent or just someone who is curious about what we're putting down, this is your show. Our independent movement, like those protesters in Minneapolis right now, is the hope for the future. Country over party, people over politics, light over heat, challenging the status quo and fueling a new movement that stands across our country. And that movement is growing in the face of fear, in the face of tyranny, in the face of an authoritarian. It wants to snatch your rights and shut you down. But remember, hope is the oxygen of democracy. If you enjoyed this episode, share it far and wide and invite others to declare their independence, especially from the corporate and partisan media. If you know folks who are sick of watching the same old shit on cable news, hook them up and you can check out this show every evening and catch up on the back episodes over the weekend. We've always got video. And stay vigilant, my friends, because eternal vigilance is the price of freedom. And no, you're not alone in your vigilance, especially when it's cold. We all bond in the suck together and we're all vigilant. We're all in this together. I'm your host, Paul Rykoff. I gotta run now to coach my little guy's basketball game, so that's gonna be fun. We're gonna try to continue to encourage young people to come together and play some hoops. So I hope wherever you are, you stay warm. You stay together. Thank you for tuning into Independent Americans. Happy Friday. And Stay vigilant, America. Stay Vigilant tells me the left and.
- [46:12]
Protester/Onlooker
Right are dreams for those without a clue and when you wait it's time.
- [46:17]
Paul Rykoff
To grow and it's not cool to.
- [46:20]
Protester/Onlooker
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 in the sea of rhetoric and I can probably go he tells me the left and right Our dreams for those without a clue and when.
- [46:39]
Paul Rykoff
You wait it's time to grow Power by righteous media.