Loading summary
Transcript33 lines
- [00:00]
Progressive Insurance Announcer
This episode is brought to you by Progressive Insurance. Do you ever think about switching insurance companies to see if you could save some cash? Progressive makes it easy to see if you could save when you bundle your home and auto policies. Try it@progressive.com Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and affiliates. Potential savings will vary. Not available in all states.
- [00:19]
Sleep Number Representative
Why choose a sleep number Smart bed.
- [00:21]
GAB and Prolon Advertiser
Can I make my site softer?
- [00:23]
Progressive Insurance Announcer
Can I make my site firmer? Can we sleep cooler?
- [00:26]
Sleep Number Representative
Sleep number does that cools up to eight times faster and lets you choose your ideal comfort on either side your sleep number setting J.D. power ranks sleep number number one in customer satisfaction with mattresses purchased in store and online. And now the more you buy, the more you save on beds, bases and more. Plus get free home delivery on most beds with base limited time for J.D. power 2025 award information visit J.D. power.com awards check it out at the Speed Bumper Store today.
- [00:51]
Sundays for Dogs Advertiser
Is your dog's food created to maximize your dog's quality of life or to extend the food's shelf life? It's time to make the switch to sundaes. Sundaes was founded by a veterinarian and mom, Dr. Tori Waxman who got tired of seeing so called premium dog food full of fillers and synthetics. So she designed sundaes air dried real food made in a human grade kitchen using the same ingredients and care you'd use to cook for yourself and your family. Every bite of sundaes is clean and made from real meat, fruits and veggies with no kibble. That means no weird ingredients you can't pronounce and no fillers because your dog deserves food made with care, not in the interest of cost cutting. You just scoop and serve. No freezer, no thawing or prep. No mess. Just nutrient rich clean food that fuels their happiest, healthiest days so you get more of them to share together. So go right now to sundays4dogs.com Acast30 and get 30% off your first three orders. Or you can use code Acast30 at checkout. That's 30% off your first order at Sundays for dogs.com Acast30 or use code Acast30 at checkout.
- [02:10]
Podcast Announcer
From executive producer Isaac Saul, this is Tangle.
- [02:25]
Ari Weitzman
Good morning, good afternoon and good evening and welcome to the Tangle Podcast. The place where you get views from across the political spectrum, some independent thinking and a little bit of our take. I'm your host for today, Tangle Managing editor Ari Weitzman. Which means the odds that you're about to hear some numbers just went up today. We're going to be talking about the measles outbreaks across the United States and the association between them or the lack thereof with vaccination rates. Before we get started, though, I have a call to action, a bit of a request to share with Tango readers and listeners. Lately, one of the most popular questions that we've gotten from our readers has been about the Department of Homeland Security's hiring and training practices, specifically their practices at their enforcement arms of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE and Customs and Border Patrol, or cbp. We're putting together a story to better understand exactly what their hiring processes look like and the experience for agents on the ground. If you or anyone you know works for DHS or ICE or cbp, we'd love to talk to you and learn more. We'd love it if you got in touch with us over signal. Our username is tanglenews.96. That's Tanglenews96ignal and we're leaving a link to that in the show notes. All right, I'm going to send it over for today's quick hits, then I'll be back for the rest of the show.
- [04:00]
News Reporter / Analyst
Here are today's quick hits According to a government report sent to Congress, two U.S. customs and Border Protection agents fired their weapons during the shooting of Alex Priddy in Minneapolis on Saturday. The report does not state whether Priddy's firearm discharged at any point during the encounter. Separately, House Democrats said they will begin impeachment proceedings against Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem if President Donald Trump does not remove her number Two Border Patrol agents shot and wounded a man in Arizona. Officials said they were attempting to apprehend the man as a suspect in a human trafficking investigation when he fled and began firing at agents and a Border Patrol helicopter. Number three. During a town hall, a man sprayed Representative Ilhan Omar of Minnesota with an unknown substance. Omar said she was unharmed and continued with the town hall. Number four. The families of two Trinidadian men who were killed in a US Strike on a boat allegedly trafficking drugs sued the US Government for wrongful death and extrajudicial killing. It is the first such lawsuit filed in federal court related to the Trump administration's boat strikes. Finally, number five. India and the European Union agreed to a free trade deal that will eliminate or reduce tariffs on most goods traded between the economies.
- [05:33]
Sundays for Dogs Advertiser
Tonight, the massive South Carolina measles outbreak.
- [05:35]
Ari Weitzman
Surging infections nearly doubling in a week now up to 558, more than 500 others quarantined.
- [05:44]
News Reporter / Analyst
We have right now the largest outbreak in the US and it's going to get worse before it gets that's better. Last week, South Carolina officials reported that measles is transmitting rapidly in the state, with 789 confirmed cases so far. South Carolina is the fifth state to accumulate at least 100 measles cases since January 2025, joining Utah, New Mexico, Arizona and Texas, where the first cases in 2025 were reported. During the current outbreaks, over 150 children have been hospitalized with measles. Two children and one adult, all unvaccinated, have died from measles complications, the first such deaths in the US In a decade. Measles is a highly contagious airborne viral infection characterized by a high fever cough, runny nose and a blotchy rash. Once a common childhood disease, scientific advancements have mitigated its incidence and severity. Most people who contract measles recover within 10 days, but severe cases can be deadly for those with weakened immune systems, including children under 5. In January, measles was reported in a largely unvaccinated Mennonite community in West Texas. The disease spread from there, with 762 cases in Texas reported by August, growing into the largest single outbreak of measles in the United States since 2000, when the disease was declared eliminated in the country. The Texas outbreak ended in August, but cases continued to be reported in other states. According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a total of 2,255 measles cases were confirmed in the United States in 2025, marking the worst year for measles in over two decades. So far, in 2026, the CDC has confirmed 416 cases across 14 jurisdictions. To maintain its elimination status, the United States must demonstrate that transmissions of the disease were not sustained across outbreaks. The World Health Organization defines elimination as 12 consecutive months without sustained transmission. If the US loses its elimination status, it will join Spain, Austria, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, the United Kingdom and Canada as nations that have lost their elimination status in the past year. Leaders at the Department of Health and Human Services have downplayed the current outbreaks. It's just the cost of doing business with our borders being somewhat porous for global and international travel, ralph Abraham, principal deputy director at the cdc, said. Despite the American Academy of Pediatrics recently breaking from the CDC over its vaccination schedule, both bodies still recommend parents provide their children with the mmr, measles, mumps and rubella vaccine. Recent outbreaks in the US and across the globe have reignited debates over childhood vaccinations, according to CDC data 93% of confirmed measles cases in 2025 occurred in individuals who did not receive the measles vaccine or whose vaccination status is unknown. Many vaccine skeptics frame the choice to forego the vaccine as a personal decision, while proponents stress that at least 95% of the population must vaccinate to provide herd immunity to those who are medically unable to vaccinate. Today we'll get into what the right, left and scientific community are saying about the measles outbreak. Then Managing editor Ari Weitzman gives his take.
- [09:26]
Isaac Saul / John Lowell / Production Team
We'll be right back after this quick break.
- [09:33]
Progressive Insurance Announcer
This episode is brought to you by Progressive Insurance. Do you ever find yourself playing the budgeting game, shifting a little money here, a little there and hoping it all works out well? With the name your price tool from Progressive, you can be a better budgeter and potentially lower your insurance bill too. You tell Progressive what you want to pay for car insurance and they'll help you find options within your budget. Try it today@progressive.com progressive casualty insurance company and affiliates price and coverage match limited by state law not available in all states.
- [10:03]
Skyrizi Advertiser
My perfect day has sand, salt water and friends, but my moderate to severe plaque psoriasis can take me out of the moment. Now I'm all in with clearer skin thanks to Skyrizi Risankizumab RZA, a prescription only 150mg injection for adults who are candidates for systemic or phototherapy with Skyrizi. Most people saw 90% clearer skin and many were even 100% plaque free at four months. Sky SkyRizi is just four doses a year after two starter doses.
- [10:31]
Podcast Announcer
Don't use if allergic to Skyrizi. Serious allergic reactions, increased infections or lower ability to fight them may occur before treatment. Get checked for infections and tuberculosis. Tell your doctor about any flu like.
- [10:41]
Progressive Insurance Announcer
Symptoms or vaccines thanks to Skyrizi.
- [10:44]
Skyrizi Advertiser
There's nothing on my skin and that means everything is everything. Ask your doctor about Skyrizi, the number one dermatologist prescribed biologic in psoriasis. Visit skyrizi.com or call 1-866-Skyrizi to learn more.
- [11:10]
News Reporter / Analyst
Here's what the Left is saying. The left worries that more outbreaks are coming and top health leaders are not meeting the moment. Some argue this outcome is a result of RFK Jr. S messaging about vaccines. In the Washington Post, Leanna S. Wen called the return of measles a public health tragedy. Time will tell how many more people will become infected and fall seriously ill in this outbreak. What's certain is that this outbreak will not be the last. At least 15 states have proposed legislation to loosen vaccine requirements. In Texas, lawmakers have already introduced more than 20 such bills this year. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Refuses to disavow the debunked theory that MMR is linked to autism. And among the several thousand Department of Health and Human Services employees terminated in Elon Musk's purge of government agencies are those tasked with disease investigation and outbreak response. It's been said that vaccines are a victim of their own success. Indeed, younger generations fail to appreciate the extraordinary benefit of vaccines because they have never seen the lethal illnesses that vaccines help avert. One can only hope that parents learn this lesson before more children are infected and suffer the consequences of measles and other vaccine preventable diseases. In Scientific American, Dan Vergano criticized the brainwashing campaign that is measles misinformation. Why is this happening? An April poll on measles beliefs from the health policy centered Kaiser Family foundation tells us 1/4 of the 1,380 people surveyed believe the false notion that the measles vaccine causes autism. Some 19% mistakenly believe the vaccine is more dangerous than the deadly virus it prevents. This is a shameful mass propaganda campaign unfolding in real time, championed by our top health official. We are on the brink of an epidemic, one that could make millions of people sick with measles each year. And this is all being done for political and personal gain, with children as the collateral damage. In 2024, Trump brought RFK Jr. Whom he once accused of being a fake anti vaxxer, onto his campaign precisely for his anti medical establishment credentials. Kennedy's views, steadily peddled on right wing outlets, attracted measles vaccine doubting voters. It was a classic case of if you can't beat him online about vaccines, give him control of the nation's public health apparatus. For the politicians and the grifters who pump out this dangerous dishonesty, these deaths don't matter so long as they get the votes. For everyone else, the deadly spread of measles is the dismal future they now promise our kids. Now here's what the right is saying. Many on the right are also concerned about the outbreak and say public health officials are fueling vaccine skepticism. Some suggest the severity of the outbreak is being overstated. The Wall Street Journal editorial board wrote about measles as a cost of doing business. Asked by the press this week if he's worried about the measles outbreaks, CDC principal Deputy director Ralph Abraham, recently appointed by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Shrugged. Not really, he replied. You know, it's just the cost of doing business, with our borders being somewhat poorest and global and international travel? Not really. Fewer than 2% of US cases have been imported from abroad. But outbreaks happen when vaccination rates fall below the levels needed to maintain herd immunity, which is about 95%. The kindergarten vaccination rate in South Carolina was 91% during the 20242025 school year. Outbreaks have increased because childhood immunizations have declined since the pandemic. Mr. Kennedy has fueled vaccine distrust, even saying the vaccine causes disabilities and death, like the virus it doesn't. Like his boss, Dr. Abraham, claims people should be free not to vaccinate children. The problem with this line is that unvaccinated children can sicken infants and immunocompromised children who can't be inoculated, leaving some disabled or worse. In a better administration, government leaders would explain this to parents rather than brush aside serious illnesses as consequential in Hot Air. David Strom criticized the left's framing of the measles outbreak. If you compare measles rates in the United States with those of our peer countries, including Canada, France, and Germany, we have the lowest per capita rate, and the number of cases is so low that natural fluctuations of a few cases per year can make the shifts appear huge. Germany and the United States have comparable rates, with extremely few cases in any given year. As for the rates of increase, natural variations account for that, although until a trend can be established, we can't rule out the possibility that RFK Jr. S skepticism might affect future cases. But certainly there is no evidence of that yet. How do I know? In 2025, Canada's per capita rate for measles was 125 per 1 million, while the U.S. s rate was 5.6 per 1 million. In other words, Canada currently has a rate 25 times higher than the United States, suggesting that something other than a few months of vaccine skepticism is at work in the variation. I prefer an actual scientific approach where all the costs and benefits of each jab is examined and weighed. The vaccine schedule as a whole is examined to determine whether there is a better and safer way to give vaccines. And above all, consent only follows complete information provided to parents and other patients. Now here is what medical experts are saying. Some experts say the outbreak will continue to spiral without a better public health approach. Others suggest the challenge of containing infectious diseases is rooted in the independence of state health agencies. In the New York Times In April 2025, Dr. Michael Mina, an epidemiologist and immunologist, wrote, I'm terrified we're headed for an epidemic. Measles is among the most contagious viruses known. Infants too young for vaccination, immune compromised people and the elderly are all at risk. Measles isn't just a fever and rash. It can cause pneumonia, brain inflammation, permanent disability and death. The current measles outbreak, with more than 480 cases largely in unvaccinated children, is gearing up to be the worst in years. And it's likely just the beginning. Recent studies estimate that more than 9 million American children are susceptible to measles, 3.6 million infants are too young to be vaccinated, and millions of immunocompromised Americans can't safely receive the vaccine. For infants under 1 who aren't yet eligible for MMR vaccination and who live in areas where measles is spreading, which is a rapidly expanding list, it's worth asking your pediatrician about getting the first dose early, as young as six months. Instead of focusing on getting people measles vaccines, Mr. Kennedy is putting resources into a study into vaccine. Autism Links Public health depends on public trust. And when that trust is broken, when people start to see vaccines as personal choices without regard to public health or worse, as threats, diseases like measles come roaring back. In MedPage Today, Nathaniel Mamo, Dreedy Jagadish and Arthur Kaplan said science has been lost amid politics and patchwork state health policy. Also beginning in a small religious community, this year's measles outbreak emerged in a West Texas Mennonite community with low vaccine coverage. The case rate has surpassed 2019's and continues to rise, fueled by decreased measles vaccination rates and nationwide spread to nearly every state. While a state may only set public health policies for its residents, the implications extend to the rest of the country. Infectious disease follows people, not borders. Naturally, it should be the federal government's role to moderate policy differences between jurisdictions. And yet ours does not. The explanation is not a lack of power, but of authority. Despite the seemingly mighty stature of federal health agencies, they have little authority over state health departments. States operate health systems largely independent of the federal government and sometimes directly against. Increasingly, as the nation's politics have polarized, public health has become a way of asserting political priorities, giving public health the appearance that it is a matter of ideology and not objectivity. This was on full display during the pandemic and has come to define American public health today. All right, that is it for what the left, right and medical experts are saying. Now I'm going to pass it over to Managing editor Ari Weitzfin for his take.
- [20:28]
Ari Weitzman
All right, that's it for what the left, right and medical experts are saying. Which leads me to my take. If you've listened to the opinions that John read earlier, and I hope you did, you would have heard a lot of consensus about the effectiveness of the MMR vaccine to prevent measles. However, you probably didn't hear a lot of engagement with the points made by those who are skeptical or or outright oppose the vaccines. So in my take today, I'd like to jump straight to addressing those concerns. First, I want to acknowledge the mindset that leads people to the reasonable position of being skeptical about vaccines. Imagine that you have a friend who lost a child under the age of one to an unknown cause. Imagine the pain and confusion that comes with such a tragedy and the desperate desire for answers that follows. That process of looking for answers will probably look different for everyone. But for a person scouring their own choices for blame, looking into vaccines, often the most obvious medical intervention a child receives after birth, is a natural starting point for many people who are in that situation. Page after page of Google searches telling them they're misguided for being skeptical won't settle their concerns. Instead, comfort comes from the first believable person who says, you're not crazy, vaccines are dangerous, and I can prove it. Today, the most prominent person delivering that message is Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. Despite rejecting the label of anti vaxxer, the Health Secretary has consistently defended the opinion to opt out of the MRR vaccine for years. Now he offers that opinion with the government authority for vaccine skeptics to justify their decision. Instead of dismissing Kennedy's argument out of hand, I want to address it directly. Using a 2019 article authored by Kennedy in Children's Health Defense, written before his run for President and still representative of his views today, A response was individual points in his own words. Now, to quote Kennedy, CDC's mortality and morbidity data suggest that measles fatalities in the pre vaccine era were 1 out of every 500,000 people population wide and 1 out of every 10,000 infected individuals. End quote. I have found plenty of sources to corroborate this claim. Before vaccines were made available to the public, measles killed 0.2 of every 100,000 people, or as Kennedy put it, 1 out of every 500,000. That's according to the 1962 paper that was cited by the source Kennedy used in his argument, but Kennedy does some sleight of hand there, discussing the pre vaccine mortality rates among infected people and among the general population, while omitting the current rates. The median general mortality rate of measles for each year this century is zero, meaning that in most years since 2000, nobody in the entire country died of measles. The maximum general mortality rate in that same time span, which was set last year in 2025, is one for every 170 million. That's only a 340 fold improvement on the pre vaccine benchmark that Kennedy is touting. When you look at infected people, the mortality rate has been, as Kennedy claimed, about 1 in 10,000 people in the US since 1962, and the mortality rate is roughly 1 out of every 1,000 infected children under 10. Again, that data is according to Kennedy's own source, which is Physicians for Informed Consent. Physicians for Informed Consent is a group that has clearly designed some visuals that are intended to help you feel comfortable with this one out of every 1,000 infected children mortality rate and simultaneously nervous about the MMR vaccine. They note in a graph that we share in the newsletter and that we'll link in the show notes that that mortality rate of 0.1% really pales in comparison to other mortality rates. In that context, compared to cancer's 2% mortality, 0.1% looks really small. But the difference of course, is that you can't get inoculated at birth for cancer. And if you could, would you say, yeah, but I'm four times likelier to die in a car accident, so what's the point? No, obviously not, because the point is that fewer kids die. To quote Alexander Langmuir, the author of the aforementioned 1962 paper that Kennedy is basing his claims on, measles is a disease whose importance is not to be measured by total days, disability or number of deaths, but rather by human values and by the fact that tools are becoming available which promise effective control and early eradication. Here's Kennedy's next point, and again in his words, I no one can say scientifically that any one of the 70 vaccine doses currently recommended for American children saves more lives than it costs. That question can only be answered by studies that compare long term health outcomes in vaccinated versus unvaccinated populations. When Kennedy says no one can say scientifically that a vaccine saves more lives than it costs, he really means to say that no one can say it definitively with certitude. But we can't say a lot of things with certitude for instance, I haven't walked on the moon, so I couldn't say definitively that I would feel lighter on its surface. However, a lot of findings scientifically support the belief that I would feel lighter on the moon. Similarly, many studies scientifically support the belief that the MMR vaccine prevents far more harm than it causes. In his demand for proof, Kennedy seems reasonable, but really, he is asking for the moon. Or to quote the National Academies, such a large study would be prohibitively time consuming and difficult. Here's Kennedy's next Studies support an unconscionably high injury rate from MMR. Merck's own MMR pre licensure studies found that 40% of children receiving the MMR vaccine suffered gastrointestinal illnesses within 42 days of the injection and 55% suffered respiratory illnesses, symptoms that might persuade rational consumers to choose the infections over the vaccine. End quote. Here Kennedy conflates injury with the symptoms outlined by the 1978 Merck study, which found that upper respiratory and gastrointestinal infections were reported in about 55% and 40% of vaccinees in two reviewed groups, respectively. It also found a faint measles like rash in nine subjects and mild transient arthalgia in one. While these symptoms sound scary, these are common side effects of a live vaccination, though today they are much less common. They're also not long term conditions that we might think of when we hear the term vaccine injury. Here's Kennedy's next point. 26% of post pubertal females might develop arthritis and arthralgia from the MMR vaccine. This is more conflation. According to a Johns Hopkins epidemiological review, adult women who took the MMR vaccine developed temporary arthritic and arthralgic symptoms they did not actually develop arthritis. Here's a way to think about that. If my hands ache for a few days after getting the flu, the flu did not give me arthritis. I just had symptoms of arthritis. I just had arthritic symptoms that eventually went away. Next, From Kennedy, a 2004 JAMA study found that an additional 1 in 640 children had seizures after MMR. Compared to unvaccinated children, about 5% of these will progress to epilepsy. Again, temporary symptoms here. Febrile seizures, which are not uncommon in infants already, are not the same as contracting a condition here, epilepsy. Kennedy supports his claim with a 2004 JAMA study. This is how that study concludes MMR vaccination was associated with a transient increased rate of febrile seizures, but the risk difference was small, even in high risk children. The long term rate of epilepsy was not increased in children who had febrile seizures following vaccination compared with children who had febrile seizures of a different etiology. Kennedy's next claim is HHH's voluntary post marketing surveillance program on vaccines. VAERS or Vaers reports over 89,000 adverse reactions to MMR through March 31, 2018, including 445 deaths. However, Vaers is a voluntary and notoriously ineffective system. VAERS captures fewer than 1% of vaccine injuries, according to a 2010 HHS funded study performed by another federal agency, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. If you multiply the known adverse events from the MMR by 100, you get 44,500 deaths and 8.9 million injuries, making the measles vaccine far worse than measles. Two things here. First, Kennedy gravely misinterprets the VAERS data. Volunteers reported deaths or injuries after vaccination. They didn't, and they really can't report causation. They also can't be closely vetted. In a classic example, Dr. James R. Laidler said he filed a VAERS report that an influenza vaccine had turned him into the Hulk. The report remained in the database until VAERS, after a discussion with Dr. Laidler, asked if it could be deleted. So Kennedy's initial number of 450 is invalid. Second, VAERS captures about 1% of non serious events, not serious ones. To the contrary, roughly 25% of adverse reactions like anaphylaxis and Guillain Barre syndrome are reported to VAERS. So Kennedy's multiplication by 100 is also invalid, making his claim of 44,500 vaccine related deaths in 2018 just a pure fiction. Lastly, Kennedy says most anti vaxxers are individuals who believe in the traditional liberal axiom that Americans should have sovereignty over their own bodies and that the government has no right to coerce healthy Americans to submit to a risky medical procedure. Here's my last point. Of course everybody has a right to ask questions and make their own choices, and being nervous about vaccines is reasonable. But having bodily autonomy means having the choice to cooperate for a higher common good or let your selfish fears persuade you. Kennedy is advocating for your fears, and he's using the language of patriotic idealism to do that. I can find an opposing and equally patriotic story to counter that with. Let's go back to the very founding of our country. After an audacious victory In Trenton in 1776, General George Washington's ragged Continental army had to endure a brutal winter in Valley Forge, locked in a battle against an enemy Washington called 10 times more dangerous than Britons, Canadians and Indians. Together, that enemy was smallpox, and the weapon Washington chose to fight it was equally inoculation. Between 1777 and 1778, the forward thinking Washington ordered a mass inoculation of Continental soldiers. As a result, the Continental army won its battle against smallpox and eventually the war. In 1777, urgency pushed Washington to supersede bodily autonomy for the sake of a common good and ultimately achieve the very birth of our nation. Today, in 2025, armed with access to a vaccine and information about its benefits, our nation's choice is not an authoritarian leader's decision to make between mass bodily autonomy on one hand and the common good on another. Instead, it is an individual choice between that higher good and each of our own fear. You have bodily autonomy. We all do. The achievements of our predecessors granted us that right now we must exercise it wisely.
- [33:15]
Isaac Saul / John Lowell / Production Team
We'll be right back after this quick break.
- [33:20]
Progressive Insurance Announcer
This episode is brought to you by Progressive Insurance. Do you ever think about switching your insurance companies to see if you could save some cash? Progressive makes it easy. Just drop in some details about yourself and see if you're eligible to save money when you bundle your home and auto policies. The process only takes minutes and it could mean hundreds more in your pocket. Visit progressive.com after this episode to see if you could save Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and affiliates. Potential savings will vary. Not available in all states.
- [33:49]
Skyrizi Advertiser
My perfect day has sand, salt water and friends, but my moderate to severe plaque psoriasis can take me out of the moment. Now I'm all in with clearer skin thanks to skyrizi risen Kizumab RZA, a prescription only 150mg injection for adults who are candidates for systemic or phototherapy with Skyrizi. Most people saw 90% clearer skin and many were even 100% plaque free. At four months, Skyrizi is just four doses a year after two starter doses.
- [34:16]
Podcast Announcer
Don't use if allergic to Skyrizi Serial Serious allergic reactions, increased infections or lower ability to fight them may occur before treatment. Get checked for infections and tuberculosis. Tell your doctor about any flu like symptoms or vaccines.
- [34:29]
Skyrizi Advertiser
Thanks to Skyrizi, there's nothing on my skin and that means everything. Ask your doctor about Skyrizi, the number one dermatologist prescribed biologic in psoriasis. Visit skyrizi.com or call 1-866-Skyrizi to learn more.
- [34:56]
Ari Weitzman
That's it for my take today. Which brings us to your questions answered. Today's question comes from Donna in Columbus, Ohio. Donna asks, I keep hearing that Obama deported 3 million illegal aliens during his presidency, and there were 37 deaths at the hand of ICE agents while they were in federal custody. No one seemed to care back then. I don't recall a single protest. Is that true? Great question. According to DHS data from each year of Obama's term, roughly 3.1 million people who came to the US illegally were removed from 2009 to 2016. The data varies from year to year, but it rounds to about 3 million. Notably, this number doesn't include returns, I.e. migrants who were apprehended but voluntarily agreed to leave the United States without going through legal proceedings. Additional context here is relevant too. Under Obama, more people were arriving at the border annually, and he focused most of his deportation efforts on people who had criminal histories or were recent arrivals. A list of ICE detainee Death Reports shows 36 deaths during Obama's presidency. That figure includes death by natural causes, though at least one report from an immigrant rights group during the Obama administration suggested that several deaths in custody were due to medical negligence. For comparison, ICE's detainee death reporting lists 18 deaths in custody during fiscal year 2025, though some sources suggest that the true total is upwards of 32 for calendar year 2025. Finally, while large protests over these deportations and deaths were not common at the time, Obama certainly faced scrutiny. He was dubbed deporter in Chief by immigrant rights activists, and his treatment of illegal immigrants became a major fault line among Democrats, drawing harsh criticism from members of his own party in Congress.
- [36:53]
News Reporter / Analyst
And here is today's under the Radar. This week, the first in a series of trials scrutinizing the impact of social media on young users, began in Los Angeles, California. The plaintiff in the first case is a 20 year old woman who joined several social media platforms as a child and says she became addicted to them, leading to anxiety and depression. She alleges that these social media companies purposely designed the addictive features and caused direct harm to users. In total, nine cases related to social media and addiction are expected to go to trial in Los Angeles. In another set of cases scheduled for this summer in Oakland, California, school districts and states will argue social media is a public nuisance. The social media companies argue that there is no causal link between social media use and addiction. The New York Times has the preview of these cases and we'll put the link to it in today's show. Notes and finally, here's Today's have a Story Microplastics are one of the most omnipresent environmental pollutants, and reports about their dangers have also been omnipresent. Researchers have detected microscopic remnants in the brain, testes, placentas and arteries, prompting an explosion of research into their detrimental effects. Now, peer reviews of those studies are finding something surprising and equally as far false positives. Fat is known to make false positives for polyethylene. The brain has approximately 60% fat, said Dr. Dusan Materich at the Helmholtz center for Environmental Research in Germany, describing a methodological flaw with one paper. Scientists raise fundamental concerns with other landmark microplastic findings as well, and the Guardian has this story. We'll put the link to it in today's Show Notes all right everybody, that.
- [38:43]
Ari Weitzman
Is it for today's episode. As always, if you'd like to support our work, you can head over to retangle.com sign up for a membership to do that. And lastly, I'll just remind you that if you or anyone you know works for DHS has been hired by dhs, went through the interview process, anything like that, reach out to us on Signal again. You can find us at Tanglenews96. That's Tanglenews96 on Signal or click the Show Notes for a link. Thanks again for listening. Peace.
- [39:12]
Isaac Saul / John Lowell / Production Team
Our Executive Editor and founder is ME, Isaac Sol, and our Executive producer is John Lowell. Today's episode is was edited and engineered by Dewey Thomas. Our editorial staff is led by Managing Editor Ari Weitzman with Senior Editor Will K. Back and Associate editors Audrey Moorhead, Lindsay Knuth and Bailey Saul. Music for the podcast was produced by Diet75. To learn more about Tangle and to sign up for a membership, please visit our website@retangle.com.
- [39:51]
Progressive Insurance Announcer
This episode is brought to you by Progressive Insurance. Fiscally responsible Financial geniuses, Monetary Magicians these are things people say about drivers who switch their car insurance to Progressive and save hundreds. Visit progressive.com to see if you could save Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and affiliates. Potential savings will vary. Not available in all states or situations.
- [40:13]
GAB and Prolon Advertiser
The youth mental health crisis is growing and social media is a major driver. Kids are spending up to nine hours a day on screens, often unsupervised, and studies show a direct link to anxiety, depression and even suicidal thoughts. That's where GAB comes in.
- [40:28]
Sundays for Dogs Advertiser
GAB offers safe phones and watches with no Internet or social media. Just the right tech at the right time. From smart watches for young kids to advanced parent managed phones for teens, GAB keeps kids connected. Saf visit gab.com getgab and use code getgab for a special offer that's G-A-B-B.com getgab Gab tech insteps independence for them, Peace of mind for parents coming off.
- [40:56]
GAB and Prolon Advertiser
A GLP1 and looking for a weight loss solution that actually lasts this new year, research shows up to 40% of weight lost on GLP1s comes from lean muscle, slowing metabolism and making weight regain almost inevitable. Prolon's five day Fasting Mimicking Diet offers a drug free way to get and keep results. It activates fasting pathways to trigger fat, focused weight loss, protect muscle and rejuvenate cells. No injections, no guesswork, just real results. Get 15% off plus a bonus gift when you subscribe@ProlonLife.com start that's ProlonLife.com start.